Record Stores That Jumped The Shark?

Discussion in 'Music, Movie and Hardware Store Guide' started by Marc Perman, Nov 29, 2016.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. overdrivethree

    overdrivethree Forum Resident

    And re: record prices reflecting "what the market will bear/people are willing to pay."

    A buddy of mine went to a local record store (not Half Price) and picked up a used copy of Zeppelin IV for like $12. He got to talking with the owner, who basically said that a lot of dealers price this stuff as if it's a rarity. But LZIV and other albums like it were pressed and sold like hotcakes, racking up millions in sales over the years before you even factor in the CD/reissue era. They might seem scarce just because people grab them up in an instant if they're in the bin. But they're not by any means rare, and that's how he prices them.

    EDIT/addition: I recognize it might be different for a place where rent is through the roof. It's obviously not just down to making all those classic rock albums seem like super rarities just to make a buck.
     
  2. Cronverc

    Cronverc Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn,NY
    Well I get all that, records become popular, supply and demand thing etc. IMO what happened lately is that thousand of clueless newbies flooded record stores looking for "cool stuff", so most record store owners feel like they can sell them almost any crappy domestic common pressing and still make money. As result of that all collectible rare records including imports just disappeared, they never in the stores anymore (straight to eBay and Discogs). Of course why bother if you can make enough money selling common stuff?
    Personally I'm not after common stuff, I'd rather pay more for good import pressing if the price still reasonable. But if I don't find any to buy, well then they not getting my money. I guess it's not a collectors market anymore.
     
  3. wiseblood

    wiseblood Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA, USA
    Oh, this is too easy...

    [​IMG]

    Every time I go into 90% of the stores in their chain, all they want to sell me are shoes, shirts, and kitschy crap. The records are there but its all the same stuff we already have. ONE store (Norwood) in the chain is exceptional. I went in the other day and they had a TON of things that I actually wanted. I was quite surprised. On the whole, though, this store has gone WAY downhill.
     
    zen archer and Andrew like this.
  4. Durm

    Durm Forum Resident

    Location:
    Durham NC
    This may have already been addressed, but most used record stores have an online presence too, thus broadening the market (and demand) for their vinyl. I know some stores that never put their prime records in the bins, saving them to sell to a worldwide market at a higher price (and avoiding the high-price perception in their store).
     
  5. Durm

    Durm Forum Resident

    Location:
    Durham NC
    Unfortunately those products subsidize the lower-margin CDs and records they sell. Many stores tried to remain "pure" and went out of business as a result. I cringe at some of the things I see sold in record stores, but I cut them some slack.
     
    ARK, No Static and TS582 like this.
  6. TS582

    TS582 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Central MA
    That stuff is why they have been able to stay around as long as they have, so I never cared what else they sold. But times are catching up with them too I guess. the stores closest to me in central MA keep closing starting a few years ago. Amherst, Leominster, Shrewsbury(?). I dropped by Norwood this past Sunday and it's nice to see their stock but something else had me in the neighborhood. NC is getting few and far between away from the bigger cities. There's still Northampton for now though.
     
  7. No Static

    No Static Gain Rider

    Location:
    Heart of Dixie
    Man, we do live in a bubble here don't we? You can't complain about the prices in record stores unless you've owned a record store.

    If the prices are high then the market will sort it out. Just because we won't pay 40 bucks for Smash Hits doesn't mean someone else won't. Price too high? Find it cheaper somewhere else more convenient. Of course it would bother me if my favorite store has raised it's prices to take advantage of the market. But, it ain't about me. I don't have to pay the rent. Prices will usually come back down if something's priced higher than what the market will bear. If not, then there will soon be another empty storefront coming to a neighborhood near you.

    And I applaud any business that tries to add anything that will keep the doors open. If they don't, then there will be another empty storefront coming to a neighborhood near you. Again.

    Most owners want to stay in business.
     
    ARK and JPagan like this.
  8. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA

    Record Surplus jumped the shark when they closed the original store on Pico.

    The new location was under new management and was never, ever, close to as much fun--nor filled with the types of bargains you'd find at the original store.
     
  9. erikdavid5000

    erikdavid5000 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Last time I was there I saw a battered original copy of Aerosmith "Rocks" for $29.99.

    Ciao, Record Surplus!
     
  10. Gaslight

    Gaslight ⎧⚍⎫⚑

    Location:
    Northeast USA
    No, he just wasn't able to get rid of a bomb.

    Some days that just happens.
     
    GetHappy!! likes this.
  11. stanlove

    stanlove Forum Resident


    Just a question. I have about 40-50 vinyl records that my wife is determined to throw out. I haven't listened to them in 25 years and there are not in the greatest of shape. I did give a few away about 5 years ago ( a kid I knew was collecting Led Zeppelin and Beatles ) and I cleaned them up and they played fine. Where do you get ride of something like that. Not sure if anyone would be interested or not. Maybe the trash is where they belong.

    I don't know anything about this stuff.
     
    Last edited: Nov 29, 2016
  12. erikdavid5000

    erikdavid5000 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Set up a Discogs store: https://www.discogs.com/search/ and look around in there for other copies and how they are priced. Record Surplus probably gave whoever sold that copy of "Rocks" a dollar.
     
  13. Durm

    Durm Forum Resident

    Location:
    Durham NC
    I'm not sure if your last sentence was meant as sarcasm but it most likely is true. I lost track of the amount of times that people came into my store looking to get $20 or so for a few crates of records, or even to donate them. The average cost to the store of a record you see in the used bins is probably under one dollar. On the other hand many of the records will never sell and clutter up an otherwise respectable selection. Maybe some stores feel that if they can get $20 for a new Sufjan Stevens LP they certainly can ask for $41 for a classic Jimi Hendrix album. They're wrong, I think.
     
    geralmar and erikdavid5000 like this.
  14. SJB

    SJB Beloved Parasitic Nuisance

    The one in Leominster closed? I grew up near there; I remember when that store was a Strawberries. When I visit my family in New England, we sometimes visit Quincy Market near Boston - there's a decent Newbury Comics there. (Or was, last time I went.)

    Back in the 1980s, I was in Rochester, New York, and I frequented the Record Archive in a big yellow building on Mount Hope Avenue. I know they've relocated, but I haven't been back in Rochester to see the new location. I found some awesome Beatles imports there, like "A Collection of Beatles Oldies" and the only copy I've ever seen of "No One's Gonna Change My World."

    In the Baltimore area, there used to be a small local chain of independent record stores called Record and Tape Traders. Then FYE bought them out, and the branches closed, one by one; now there is only one store left. It's not a bad store; I still go there when I'm nearby, and the manager, who was there before the buyout, has tried to maintain the indie feel. But it's not what it used to be.
     
  15. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Check the threads here on "hot stampers."
     
  16. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    I love Soundsations, it was my local until recently and I still go when I can. For the east coasters who head straight to In 'N Out Burger just north of LAX right after landing, Soundsations is just a few blocks away.
     
    erikdavid5000 likes this.
  17. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Sounds about right for both. I forget to mention Record Surplus's copy of Presence for $33, which is $17.99 everywhere else in town.
     
  18. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    The two stores i visited in London's Camden Town this past summer certainly seemed to be taking advantage of the clueless newbies.
     
  19. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    The owner of Monkey Music Emporium in Brighton told me with pride about pricing records fairly; that store was one of my best shopping experiences ever.
     
    overdrivethree likes this.
  20. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    I happened to be in Baltimore last week, there are several record stores there now. I'd definitely go back to Celebrated Summer and Sound Garden.
     
  21. stanlove

    stanlove Forum Resident

    Thanks. Will look into that.
     
  22. nodbor

    nodbor Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    What the hell Robin, ya should have been reaching for the repellent without Batman having to ask for it. Just like when....... will you know.
     
  23. nodbor

    nodbor Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    This is so true. I see other online stores sell at different online sites. Their names come up at, Ebay, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Discogs, and many other places.
     
  24. steveharris

    steveharris Senior Member

    Location:
    Mass
    Audiophile USA? 75% of their crap you can easily find WAY cheaper.What a ripoff.
     
  25. jlykos

    jlykos Forum Resident

    Location:
    Parts Unknown
    Every record store in San Francisco has jumped the shark. I went there around the Christmas holidays last year with my wife's family and went record shopping at a few local / indie places in my free time. Prices were completely ridiculous. I'm talking about $30 - $60 for most single albums, regardless of rarity (or perceived rarity). A lot of this is probably due to the sky-high rents in San Francisco where stores need to charge insane amounts of money for everything just to get by. Most stores had a bunch of customers in them but nobody was buying anything.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine