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Video Store Gets Set To Close Its Doors After Three Decades

By Howard Nathan

DENVER (CBS4) - It's the end of an era in Denver. The oldest video store in the city is getting ready to close its doors.

For 33 years, people have been going to Video One at East Sixth Avenue and Downing Street to rent movies. The store has been sitting at the same spot since 1984 (a year before Blockbuster opened its first store).

Video One
Video One (credit: CBS)

A CBS4 crew visited the store and found Richard Gavarrete on the floor of sorting through a stack of VHS tapes. He told us his limit to buy was 5.

"I really thought the community would support it and embrace it because there's not much video stores left anymore," said Richard Gavarette.

Video One
Video One (credit: CBS)

Evan Franklin, another customer, told CBS4 he was "delighted" when he first found out about the store.

"It's sad that it's going," he said.

What killed Video One? Home streaming and delivery services like Netflix.

In the years after most Blockbuster stores closed Video One owner Jeff Hahn was able to stay open by stocking hard-to-find titles.

"We were still the place to go to find everything that was outside of the scope of the 8,000 things you could easily stream," said Hahn.

Video One
Video One (credit: CBS)

Hahn called the advent of Netflix the real nail in the coffin.

News of the closing caused Eileen Richardson to become emotional. Like a lot of Video One customers, she spent hours looking through the movie titles.

Her reaction to the closing?

"I can't even accept that, I'm so sad, times are changing and this place has meant so much to me," she said.

By the time he was ready to leave, that stack Gavarrete came to buy had grown to 15 VHS tapes.

Video One still has thousand of movie titles remaining. Prices range anywhere from $3 to $100. The store also features a service you might not have ever seen. It's a drill press with a buffing pad to get rid of scratches on DVDs.

Video One
Video One (credit: CBS)

The store will close for good at the end of May or June.

Howard Nathan is a veteran newsman. Decades later, he still enjoys writing a clever sentence, asking the tough question and talking to people in Colorado. Follow him on Twitter @CBS4Howard and read his bio.

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