In an era of streaming, a Langford man is offering up nostalgia as he looks to sell a VHS collection that’s grown so big — he’s had to rent out a locker to store it.
“I have 1,200 VHS tapes in the storage locker, plus I have an additional 600 at my personal home,” Terrence Guignard said. “The monthly storage fees add up, so I thought I might as well sell.”
Guignard hopes to purge 600 VHS tapes, give or take, all in one sale for one lucky buyer who can sit back, relax and have movie nights — ’90s style.
“There are probably 50 or 60 classic ones that my grandparents grew up watching, so things with Bruce Lee or Chuck Norris or a young Susan Sarandon and Kirk Douglas,” Guignard said.
While his VHS’ are opened and used, sealed ones are often a hot commodity — last month in Dallas, Tex., a sealed, near-mint-condition Back To The Future videotape sold for $75,000 at auction.
“All the classic westerns, there’s a huge collection of those. Then there are maybe 40 war movies and tons of horror ones,” Guignard said, noting flicks from the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s make up the majority of what’s up for grabs.
“There’s a good variety — it’s a good mix.”
Shrinking his collection wasn’t the initial goal, but plans have changed.
“The intent was to create a throwback Blockbuster nostalgia movie room and have movie shelves with tons of movies,” he said. “We all loved it growing up.”
And it was a plan years in the making that took precedence after movie rental stores like Blockbuster began closing up shop and selling their product at a bargain.
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“It started with a passion for movies. I just collected them over the years,” recalled Guignard. “I’d go online and see someone was selling 30 or 50 tapes, so I’d buy them.”
That’s because even with countless movies at his fingertips, thanks to modern-day streaming services, his childhood favourites are seldom found.
“There are streaming services that are seriously lacking in providing a wide range of titles. There are times so often that I look for something and can’t find it, so I go to my collection and there it is,” he said.
While owning a movie’s physical copy outweighs any digital copy in literal terms, for Guignard it also ushers in a flood of nostalgia.
“I’d say [going to the video store is] probably my favourite nostalgic memory. I actually remember not that long ago, maybe 12 years ago, when there was still an active Blockbuster where I lived,” he added.
“I still have my Blockbuster card.”
Find Guignard’s Facebook ad online here. He’s asking $500 for the collection or best offer.
Ethan Morneau
