Last Blockbuster on Earth mints new memberships 'every day'

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You may still have a late fee for that DVD you rented in 2010 if -- and only if -- you belong to the Blockbuster store in Bend, Oregon.

At the end of March, the last Blockbuster video in Australia will close, leaving the Oregon outpost of the once-dominant brand the lone survivor, according to the Australian Associated Press.

Five of the final six Blockbusters in the U.S., including two in Alaska, closed last year.

"Obviously, we feel sad for them. One of the things about being a Blockbuster is the kinship we all share," Sandi Harding, who has been the general manager of the Bend store for the last 15 years, told ABC News. "We have people come from all over the country and the best are the ex-employees. They always come in -- like seeing a long-lost friend. They come behind the counter and type in their number because our computers haven't changed."

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The store and its customers probably defy stereotypes. The last of the Blockbusters is profitable, and in fact growing, Harding said. Its customers aren't technophobes and holdouts stuck in the past. There are a lot of younger people who are moving to Bend in search of community and nostalgia.

"Everyone assumes that our customers are older, and maybe not as internet savvy, but that's not true for us anymore," Harding said. "Bend is one of the fastest-growing cities in Oregon and we have new people of all ages asking to set up an account, excited, saying, 'Wow,' we don't have Blockbuster where we lived. Now that we're the last, one it's re-energized the hype of coming in and getting a card."

A card? Yes, the stores' printers, which date back to 1992 and use floppy disks, don't work as well anymore, but the staff of about 10 employees is there to hand-write the iconic blue-and-yellow laminated membership cards.

Five to 10 new accounts are created daily, Harding told ABC News.

"Every day," she said. "We have people come in to get a card every day."

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