Which is also why I don’t buy much new vinyl from my locals any more. They (understandably) don’t want to eat the cost of a return and so refuse them, but I don’t want to be in the position of having spent money on something that is defective and have no recourse to do something about it.
When did record stores start refusing to deal with customer complaints and defective product? I don't blame you for taking your business elsewhere. If other business's acted the same way, there wouldn't be any business's open for business.
I think brick and mortar stores started to reject returns when the record labels started rejecting returns.
See @lv70smusic 's post above - many brick and mortar shops can't return vinyl to the labels for credit the way they used to be able to do. Some will do so for customer goodwill, but they're eating the cost of that return.
Which is one possible explanation of why some stores are pricing above list. It’s to help cover these costs.
Yup. Music is now sold unreturnable to retailers. So every time the customer returns something, they eat it. This has been the case since CDs took over in the late 80s.
More so that the middle man called a one-stop, adds to the cost in addition to the record company’s cost, thus 2 mark ups before it gets to your record store.
That, and the fact that most locals aren't buying their records in bulk purchasing the way they did when the LP was the biggest commercial music medium. The old days of chain stores getting big volume discounts for their purchases is largely gone (and the mechanisms for returns and credits just aren't there anymore).
I guess Amazon have enough volume to make these losses negligible, plus they can sell imperfect media via their "Warehouse".
Indeed. The majors don’t deal direct, so no discounts. The indies do and many of them are quite reasonable. A Store’s biggest point of negotiation is on the shipping costs of the order to the store.
How about this one? David Bowie - Clareville Grove Demos 3x7" Singles Box https://www.amazon.com/Clareville-G...BB8SC2JK0X1&psc=1&refRID=03Q557MH9BB8SC2JK0X1 I found it at Rockaway Records new & sealed for $14.99 and it was a surprisingly good listen. Had planned on steering clear of these Bowie 7" sets but it was really cool, glad to have it. Might have to get the "...Keyhole" box. Edit: "...Keyhole" ordered. Thanks for the lead!
Gordon Lightfoot: Complete Albums 1970-1998 (MP3) - $7.99 https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Alb...tfoot+complete&qid=1574916868&s=dmusic&sr=1-1
My store actually puts the returns back on the shelf at a very small discount, so I avoid those. I feel bad so I buy little new from them, even though they said they would rather I do that than buy from Amazon. It’s just so much easier to get it from Amazon and put it back on the porch if defective. I don’t like my local stores having to eat the cost. I can’t believe stores even carry new that they can’t return. With the low margins, I don’t get it.
What a terrible business model for the shops who sell vinyl. Amazon and Walmart can eat the cost and I suspect at the scope with which they do business, they make a sizable profit regardless but it's bound to be unnecessarily difficult for local shops to turn in a profit. And it must be unbelievably frustrating to eat a cost due to someone else's mistakes or incompetence (labels).
Jimi Hendrix - Valleys of Neptune 2LP $15.00 https://www.amazon.com/Valleys-Neptune-LP-Vinyl-Jimi-Hendrix/dp/B0033AGPEE
Good price! May I ask, what is the consensus about how this one sounds? I would very much appreciate any input or thoughts on this pressing and how it is sonically compared to others, thanks!
SpinClean at Amazon US for $59.99 right now. Normally $79.99 https://www.amazon.com/Spin-Clean-Record-Washer-MKII-Complete/dp/B002UKSZUU
Thanks! Yeah, I read some of the comments both here and on Amazon. It doesn't sound like everyone is that thrilled with it. I do have the MOFI, which I know some don't care for. But, some others on the album discussion thread do like it, one long-time member with some stunning equipment rated it 2nd next to the UK original, so I guess I'm probably set okay. Thanks again for the reply mate!