overpriced record stores

[controlthebleeding]

San Antonio - I'm with everyone else about Hog Wild. I use to go back there in 80's and early 90's and the price was really good on new and used vinyl. I went there about 3 weeks ago and not only was everything overpriced, but there wasn't anything good either. I walked out with nothing. Shame, because i used to be able to walk out with $100 worth of shit easily.

Austin

Waterloo - Nothing is really overpriced as a whole. I find that depending on label is what you're gonna overpay for. I have found in that store that stuff from Asian Man, No Idea, and Prank is reasonably priced ($10-$12 a lp) while others are $5 more. I don't even bother with the 7"s. Most are all overpriced. I still go there because every now and again you'll find a few gems in the used section.

Cheapo Records - Not so cheap if you're buying new vinyl. Not so expensive either. Just a bit overpriced. But you can find some really good records in the used section for well under their worth depending on what you're looking for. I found a Knapsack - "day 3 of my new life" 2x10" for $7 and a Nar/Lizards split lp for $6. Which i think is way underpriced. And they were in great condition. Too bad i didn't have more or i would have bought a more.

[desensitizedbyu]

Kiss the sky records in Geneva, Il. Painfully expensive and run by old hippies that listen to way too much Hendrix.

Haha very true. I went to school with one of the dudes that runs that place.

[suburbanargyle]

It makes me feel better that I never really go to Hogwild now after reading that everyone else feels the same way! It sucks that it's so much cheaper to just buy mailorder nowadays.

Also on the topic, what's up with every old SST CD being like $17 (in every store)?

[xjustinxschwierx]

It makes me feel better that I never really go to Hogwild now after reading that everyone else feels the same way! It sucks that it's so much cheaper to just buy mailorder nowadays.

Also on the topic, what's up with every old SST CD being like $17 (in every store)?

SSD CDs have always been outrageously expensive...the vinyl has alays been reasonably priced...they're weird like that.

[gabpower]

I'm disappointed in the whole record system at this point. How is it possible that records went form $8-$10 in the late '90s-early aughts to what they cost today? It's not legitimate inflation because CDs didn't go up nearly as much. I think it's money grabbing. Perhaps the cost of production has risen dramatically, I don't know. But a big reason I've always bought vinyl is it was half the price for the same music. Now it's triple the price. If the problem is all these fucking colors I say dump that shit.

Virgil recently posted a deal to make 1000 records for something like $2399 so that's below $2.50 per record. Of course there is shipping and the whole production of the music in the studio but I think it can easily be around $10 for every record. Those big sellers like "Beatles - Abbey Road" and such could go even less since they make a lot of them and since the price would be lower for a big batch, they would sell more... it's a running circle. I think pretty much everyone is going to the maximum profit route so that's why it's so expensive. I say that if some record store overprices something/everything, don't buy it from them by compassion, deal with the label instead and sometimes you get an extra gift with the order.

[sunna]

Yeah lunchbox in Charlotte is nice but their location sucks ass. I never bother going. I just order online when possible, supporting labels is more important than storefronts.

I'm confused by this. What do you feel is wrong with my location? It's in the most vibrant part of town and only 1 mile outside of downtown. Do you live in Concord or something?

[sunna]

It makes me feel better that I never really go to Hogwild now after reading that everyone else feels the same way! It sucks that it's so much cheaper to just buy mailorder nowadays.

Also on the topic, what's up with every old SST CD being like $17 (in every store)?

SST still wholesales their CDs based on a 90s sales model. Maybe they will eventually figure it out. But basically every cd is at least $10 wholesale, and the extended CDs (ones that are from 2xLPs or have bonus tracks, etc) are like $11.50 wholesale. And that's direct from them, so if you buy it from a one-stop or other distributor it's even more.

[httran]

Lunchbox is great! Too bad I live in Chapel Hill and its a 2.5 hour drive.

[xxmartinxx]

I owned a record store for nearly 10 years. There's a very slim markup to be had relative the amount of stock overhead needed to survive.

Since someone brought up No Idea, if you do a wholesale order direct from No Idea, their prices aren't significantly cheaper than what they sell them for retail. Also, smaller distros like No Idea tend to charge you significantly more for shipping that a large "one stop" type distributor because they ship less and are less likely to have a volume deal set up through UPS or FedEx. So a $7 LP on No Idea costs a record store nearly the same amount. If you don't deal with them directly for whatever reason, through a one stop it's closer to $10. For the record, SST releases on both CD and vinyl have never been exorbitantly priced. They were under $10 wholesale for a normal SST CD and the LPs were in the $7 range from a one stop. The "double" albums on CD were always priced a buck or two higher.

I'm not defending a store gouging customers. Not only does it suck for me (since I no longer get stuff wholesale), but it's a self defeating and unsustainable business model for the business. But when you factor in the loss of customers, the death of CDs (and the used CD market which was the bread and butter of these stores) and what it costs to rent a space, pay for electricity, gas, and an employee or two I can see why they do it. Also, keep in mind labels are charging more for vinyl these days. Look at Touch And Go and Dischord for example. Their vinyl used to be priced relatively cheap and now they're priced as expensive or more than their CD releases.

Labels are charging more, shops are charging more... it seems like everyone is just trying to "drink everyone's milkshake" as fast as they can and skip town. Sucks for the fan.

[SweetJerryWine]

There's only one record store in Halifax, plus one used cd store that has a ridiculously small (but not terrible) selection of vinyl. The record store overprices almost everything by at least $5-10, even the used things. More often than not, I buy things online, because it's usually just not worth it for me to buy from them.

For record store day, they had all of their RSD prices way higher than what that big pdf file said they should be. The used cd store, which is a few streets away, had almost the exact same RSD selection (even though they don't have much vinyl to begin with) but for much, MUCH cheaper prices. And I know the cd store definitely doesn't make as much money as the record store. When it's that obvious that the guys are the record store are cash-grabbing jerks, it's hard to support.

[thischarmingham]

I'm disappointed in the whole record system at this point. How is it possible that records went form $8-$10 in the late '90s-early aughts to what they cost today? It's not legitimate inflation because CDs didn't go up nearly as much. I think it's money grabbing. Perhaps the cost of production has risen dramatically, I don't know. But a big reason I've always bought vinyl is it was half the price for the same music. Now it's triple the price. If the problem is all these fucking colors I say dump that shit.

since I started my label 9 years ago production costs have gone up an insane amount for vinyl. remember vinyl is an oil byproduct.

Also for years labels kept prices artificially low. I think there are some that are going way over board but in reality seeing wholesale prices go up to $8 to $10 was a long time coming. Most people are selling CDs so low now because they are much cheaper to make and now they're the loss leaders instead of vinyl.

[xxmartinxx]

since I started my label 9 years ago production costs have gone up an insane amount for vinyl. remember vinyl is an oil byproduct.

Also for years labels kept prices artificially low. I think there are some that are going way over board but in reality seeing wholesale prices go up to $8 to $10 was a long time coming. Most people are selling CDs so low now because they are much cheaper to make and now they're the loss leaders instead of vinyl.

It's basic supply and demand. CD consumers are moving towards MP3s where as vinyl consumers are willing to pay more for their preferred medium.

[thischarmingham]

I'd also like to say that some of your complaints about store pricing are just plain ignorant. As someone who has bought music personally for 20 years, worked in record stores for 12, run a label for almost ten and owned a record store for over two I can see a lot of angles and facts you can't. Are there stores that don't know what they're doing yes. Are there stores that have huge mark ups simply to take advantage of people, yes. However to expect that the prices in a store should be around the same as mail ordering direct is ludicrous. Labels sell to people for often just a little more than what wholesale cost is. Stores sometimes have to get records at 2nd and 3rd (even 4th) party suppliers who have each added a mark up. So when it gets to a store the price can be greatly different. That's not the store fucking you over. It's a store pricing things based on their costs.

[porchlight]

I'd also like to say that some of your complaints about store pricing are just plain ignorant. As someone who has bought music personally for 20 years, worked in record stores for 12, run a label for almost ten and owned a record store for over two I can see a lot of angles and facts you can't. Are there stores that don't know what they're doing yes. Are there stores that have huge mark ups simply to take advantage of people, yes. However to expect that the prices in a store should be around the same as mail ordering direct is ludicrous. Labels sell to people for often just a little more than what wholesale cost is. Stores sometimes have to get records at 2nd and 3rd (even 4th) party suppliers who have each added a mark up. So when it gets to a store the price can be greatly different. That's not the store fucking you over. It's a store pricing things based on their costs.

YUP!

And when people complain about No Idea releases being $13 bucks in a record store, it's nuts. Wholesale prices are practically the same as the $8 "public" prices, plus you pay about $1 shipping. So a record store selling a No Idea release for $13 is really only profiting $4 or $5 bucks. Most wholesale prices for LPs from other labels and distros are over $9 and sometimes plus shipping.

And selling a 7" for $5 at a record store generally means you profit $1 or so. That's why a lot of places will have $6 7"s and things like that.

Yes, some places have ridiculous markups, but most people need to me more informed before they go criticizing.

[astrangerwithcandy]

Just got back from a couple of stores and figured I'd throw some out if anyone is ever in Jersey/PA area. Princeton Record Exchange has an awesome selection but for the most part is pricey, every now and again you can find a gem in there. I mentioned before that Hold Fast in Asbury is awesome. The Record Collector in Bordentown is reasonably priced but doesn't have a huge amount of newer stuff. Vintage Vinyl in Fords is awesome all around. Siren records in Doylestown PA is amazing, awesome selection of hardcore for decent prices. I actually just paid 8 bucks for Career Suicide by AWS and it turned out to be a first press on yellow. Records and Books in Newtown should be avoided, small selection, nothing really new and insanely unorganized.

[caitlinryan]

Virgil recently posted a deal to make 1000 records for something like $2399 so that's below $2.50 per record. Of course there is shipping and the whole production of the music in the studio but I think it can easily be around $10 for every record. Those big sellers like "Beatles - Abbey Road" and such could go even less since they make a lot of them and since the price would be lower for a big batch, they would sell more... it's a running circle. I think pretty much everyone is going to the maximum profit route so that's why it's so expensive. I say that if some record store overprices something/everything, don't buy it from them by compassion, deal with the label instead and sometimes you get an extra gift with the order.

What else would you have a record store do but go the "maximum profit route"? It's nice to pretend that everyone should be active in your particular area of interest for the pure love of doing it, but it doesn't work that way. Also, I promise you that a good majority of LPs cost more than $2.50 to produce.

Complaining about the price of records increasing over the past few decades reminds me of kids complaining about how shows aren't $5 anymore. Gas also isn't 70 cents a gallon like it was in the 90's. A couple years ago (the summer that gas was pushing $4 a gallon) Verse & Have Heart played here (we're 4 hours northwest of Detroit, so not exactly on a regular tour route) and some kids left at the door because it was $10. These kids were also like 18 so I don't know at what point they even attended these idealized $5 shows, but I digress.

I'm sorry if $5 7"s seem so outlandish, but what should a store charge for them when the store has to pay $3.90?

I'll second everything that all the other people with inside knowledge of record stores are saying. I've also found that without having that knowledge from actually working in/running a store or label, the average consumer has no idea how a business model like a record store works.

[jonnywreck]

i feel like every record store in the dallas area is pretty overpriced. the only exception to the rule escapes me, but it's got a minor record selection. mainly punk, which is cool, but i wouldn't say it prides itself on how many records it has.

[burntwolf]

Red Devil Records in San Rafael prices his stuff SUPER high. he does a lot of ebay selling too.

i only visit once every couple years. that joint makes it hard to support a local store.

Ameoba (esp SF) has put up some INSANE prices on their wall records i've seen. way more than ebay prices.

Rasputin's isn't much of a bargain hunter joint either.

Sometimes you get lucky though.

[One Hundred Fifty-Two]

Just throwing this out there for discussion. Could record stores benefit from giving people a fair dollar for their used records? Stores load up on old records because they can offer people pennies for them. But when they offer pennies to people with expensive records people leave the store laughing and go to eBay. This creates stores with either all old crap, or a bunch of new vinyl they get from a distributor and put a slight mark up on, or a combination of the two. Those types of stores (which is pretty much every one) give no reason for a person under 40 to shop there.

[astrangerwithcandy]

Just throwing this out there for discussion. Could record stores benefit from giving people a fair dollar for their used records? Stores load up on old records because they can offer people pennies for them. But when they offer pennies to people with expensive records people leave the store laughing and go to eBay. This creates stores with either all old crap, or a bunch of new vinyl they get from a distributor and put a slight mark up on, or a combination of the two. Those types of stores (which is pretty much every one) give no reason for a person under 40 to shop there.

One way or another the store or record owner is going to take a hit. The store can't offer the owner as much as ebay otherwise they'd take a hit on the resale. There would have to be a lenience on one end of the deal.

[One Hundred Fifty-Two]

Just throwing this out there for discussion. Could record stores benefit from giving people a fair dollar for their used records? Stores load up on old records because they can offer people pennies for them. But when they offer pennies to people with expensive records people leave the store laughing and go to eBay. This creates stores with either all old crap, or a bunch of new vinyl they get from a distributor and put a slight mark up on, or a combination of the two. Those types of stores (which is pretty much every one) give no reason for a person under 40 to shop there.

One way or another the store or record owner is going to take a hit. The store can't offer the owner as much as ebay otherwise they'd take a hit on the resale. There would have to be a lenience on one end of the deal.

But when a record store offers you $1 for a $20 record everyone loses. The seller won't sell it, the store won't have the goods, and store customers waste their time looking through garbage.