Back in the last century, when phones were just used for calling and videos were on cassettes, there was a chain of video stores called BLOCKBUSTER® that have all but disappeared. Now we’re down to just a single one that is reaching out to the public via Airbnb.
In its heyday, Blockbuster was a multi-billion dollar business with 9,000 stores around the world. They started dwindling when Netflix’s mail service came on the scene and became virtually extinct as expectations shifted to video on demand through streaming services.
Now the very last Blockbuster store still in operation is located in Bend, Oregon. Sandi Harding has been managing it since 2005.
Harding is the host for the Airbnb offering a studio with·1 bed and a half-bath that can sleep four guests. The description does sound inviting for anyone old enough to feel nostalgic about the golden age of video rentals:
As the last standing location in the world, our BLOCKBUSTER store is an ode to movie magic, simpler times and the sense of community that could once be found in BLOCKBUSTER locations around the world. Over the past few months, we’ve been missing the regular visits from friends, neighbors and tourists from around the world. So, we’re opening our store to three quarantine pods of Deschutes County guests for a socially distanced movie night, just like those of decades past!
The offering is intended as a gesture of gratitude for the local community’s support.
Accordingly, residents are able to “call dibs” on the booking, as per the listing:
Hey Deschutes County residents! Dust off those membership cards for a sleepover inside the world’s last BLOCKBUSTER. When you call dibs on this stay, you’re booking a night back in the 90s, but this time you won’t have to beg your parents to rent the latest horror flick–we’ll give you the keys to the entire store!
The first sleepover date is August 17 at 1 PM PST on Airbnb. The movie rental charge is $3.99, so the upgrade to include a room costs just one cent more (not including taxes and fees). The establishment assures its guests that it will meet all coronavirus standards for cleanliness to assure them that the trip down memory lane will be a safe one.
Guests could also feel good about their visit’s benefit to the community. Airbnb said it will make a donation to a charity favored by the store, the Humane Society of Central Oregon.
And for those of us who can’t be there in person, there is an option to relive the glory days of Blockbuster with swag. The store has a site that sells stickers, sunglasses, shirts, hats, bags, etc. that let you declare your loyalty to the enduring memory of a time gone by.
Some cynics may believe this is more about gaining publicity for Airbnb in light of its imminent IPO than about the Blockbuster community. But whatever the motivation here, it is an example of the effectiveness of nostalgia marketing.