How to run a diehard record shop

Matt Weston, 3 Oct

Laura Barton made a good pick of Britain’s best 20 independent record shops in yesterday’s Guardian. I’ve shopped at seven out of 20: Rough Trade, Rounder Records, Selectadisc, Ray’s Jazz, Haggle Vinyl, Fopp, and Piccadilly Records. Edit out the descriptive stuff, and there are some really useful how-tos here - not only for indie record shops, but for indie retailers of any stripe. I made this quick list:

Start an album club. Customers sign-up to receive three, four, five or 10 CDs a month. - Rough Trade

Only hire people who can name at least 18 artists from 20 album titles. - Rounder Records

Call regulars with recommendations. - Disque

Introduce people to something they might not have heard. - Monorail Music

Offer a section for local artists, and a large noticeboard where you can advertise for a bassist. - Selectadisc

Offer mail order, because people have forgotten how to walk out of their houses. - Action Records

Love what you sell. - Clerkenwell Music

Do a maths degree. - Avalanche

Be like a delicatessen. - Reveal Records

Let shoppers haggle over price. - Haggle Vinyl

Be the opposite of a download. - Crash Records

Play your music very loud, so people can hear your shop before they get to it. - 3 Beat

Split your shop down the middle to form not one, but two shops. - Stand Out/ Minus Zero

Be a collector. Be sad when you sell a record. - Vox Pop

Comments have been closed for this post, but if you're friendly you can email us at hello at businessbricks dot co dot uk.


Reader comments
2 comments so far, add yours below

Elliot Jacobs says:
I think I’d add Organise an event to the list. I remember a book reading and Q&A session with Everett True at a shop in Brighton a few years back. It attracted a crowd of early 90s American punk enthusiasts who were happy to take a good look through the records on the shelves long after the event had finished.
by Elliot Jacobs on 18 Oct

Jon Boy says:
Most of these stores have the weight of history and nostalgia behind them, I am sure in the age of digital music that it would be a brave man to try opening a music shop now. FOPP seems the future of music stores to me, they have done well to balance commercialism against feeling independent. I can’t help feeling the internet and digital music will win in the end though, how much longer will vinyl even be made for? I’ve even found some software to start digitising my old cassette collection to play on my MP3 player.
by Jon Boy on 19 Oct