A SOUTHAMPTON music store proved they were top of the pops when they shot in as the number one HMV shop in the country.

HMV in Above Bar beat off competition from 170 company stores across Great Britain and Ireland to win the prestigious title.

Now the shop's 52 members of staff are set to cash in after scooping a share in a £50,000 windfall for coming out tops.

The man behind the store's recent success is manager Steve Gribble, who joined the company as a graduate trainee.

Steve, 29, who has been at the store for 14 months after moving down from Swansea, said: "It's all about teamwork and there is a great atmosphere in the store.

"We've achieved some amazing results and now we're the top HMV superstore in the country. Everyone is wondering what they're going to spend the money on."

Steve collected the HMV 363 Oxford Street Prize for Leadership and Teamworking award at a ceremony in Brighton on the same day that Craig David paid the store a visit to meet fans as part of his Southampton homecoming.

The main aim of the award was to encourage managers and staff at each HMV store to identify particular issues, problems or opportunities that could be solved or addressed through teamwork.

Steve said: "Being a pretty large store trading over three floors, and employing more than 50 permanent staff, it's not always easy making sure that everybody has the information they need to do their jobs properly.

"Our solution was to try to set up a cascading flow of information. The project has worked beyond all our expectations.

"It's a pleasure working here and you can see that staff relish coming to work in the mornings.

"We only have a five per cent turnover of staff. We have a fast-track scheme, which pushes people through the company and it means that many of them stay."