Today's Mall Looks Quite Different From What I Remember by Nick Law - December 10, 2008 A long time ago, (let’s say about 10 years) I remember when my parents used to take me to the mall where, if my report card was good enough, I was allowed to pick out one CD at the record store. The album was sure to be carefully examined by my mother, just to make sure that my fragile ears didn’t hear anything too controversial. As the years went by and my taste in music changed, I couldn’t help but notice that something else changed as well. The used record stores at the mall were all disappearing one by one. The larger, retail giants such as Best Buy, Circuit City and Wal-Mart had all but wiped them out. Even the smaller chains like Sam Goody and Coconut Records were no match for the low prices that these stores offered. Could it be that the days of the used record store in modern day suburbia are officially over? Possibly, when you take into account the low prices on mainstream music that these stores have to offer such a demographic. The few people in these towns that are looking for hard to find music on the other hand will undoubtedly find it on the Internet. For those of us who still live in cities big enough for neighborhoods, the used record stores are more than just a place where people come together to buy mainstream music and hard to find albums. These stores are sacred grounds where people come together to talk about music, listen to old records and complain about the direction that the industry is going for hours, sometimes without even making a purchase. About six months ago, I was living above a used record store on Thompson Street in the West Village of Manhattan. About once a week, I would stop in just to say hi and chat with some of the regulars. It’s a place that I miss, especially now when I visit some of the retail giants in the suburban areas that surround my current city. Nobody likes paying outrageous prices for something they can easily download online. If you look at used record stores as an expensive alternative to Wal-Mart, however, you’ve missed the picture. Every good neighborhood should have at least one good record store. In an on-demand world where everything can be downloaded and bought in an instant based on impulse, sometimes it’s nice to know that there’s a place where you can just go an browse without somebody in a blue polo and khaki pants constantly following you around. Seriously though, while we’re on the subject, what happened to Sam Goody? That place used to be in every single mall and now I can’t find one. And where did Mr. Bulky go? Today’s mall looks nothing like the mall I grew up with. If these businesses are struggling, maybe I need to write congress a letter and petition for a bailout because I could sure go for a giant bag of gummi worms right about now.  Subscribe to Latest Articles

3 Responses

Lauren December 14, 2008 2:35 PM Sam Goody became FYE and is still around. But years ago, I remember when record stores started to make Explicit albums unavailable to minors. Sam Goody used to make that a point when selling albums. If the CD had any mention of explicit lyrics on a sticker or on the back of the long-box CD, they wouldn't sell it to you. This almost killed the store as other stores in the mall didn't have this restriction and made more money. Jackyl wrote a song about it and their video showed exactly what happened. Why would anyone not sell albums to children that they want to buy and why would they bring their parents to the mall to buy them? No child I knew would do that at the time. FYE is around and I believe bought up Sam Goody. Their prices is what's driving people away. Their CD prices were always $17+ for older releases and that's going back to the 80's. Walmart sells CDs for $12 as does Best Buy sometimes. LPs used to cost $10 and CDs used to cost $17, but with the advent of downloadable music and people not really noticing the difference (for reasons I won't understand), you no longer had to go to the mall to buy music. Add onto that, the internet sales with lower prices and no sales tax.... it adds up after a while and that $17 can be better spent elsewhere. CD sales are lower mainly because most people already have long converted their collection to CDs over 10-15 years ago. With subscription music and online downloads, there's no really need to buy so many CDs any more. I agree with you that you should always have a local record store with hard to find albums. In NJ, there was Vintage Vinyl and there's even one down the street from me. This is the first place I go as VV is too far from me to go daily. They get the European releases that don't always get sold here, and if they don't have what you want, they can always get them for you. Sam Goody might have done that, but they never did for me.

Cathy December 22, 2008 2:35 PM There's an old song, "Video Killed the Radio Star" Now I think that internet killed the video, radio and record star. You're right, nothing is quite the same, But those wonderful days at the mall sure were fun! And even I could go for a gummy worm or a sour patch kid......

Disc Xpress March 17, 2009 2:35 PM Great comments. I don't believe records are dead yet. In fact, the giants use their financial leverage to lure buyers in their stores by selling Cds at low prices. They use them as loss leaders. Independent record stores can't afford to put CDs on the shelves as cheap as Wal-Mart and Best Buy. The profit margins are too slim for independents to compete. Some record stores have chosen to go into the used CD market so they can use the sales of used CDs to support bottom line profits. In my opinion, in order for independent music stores to survive the marketing power of the giants they will first have to sell related entertainment products with wider profit margins and lower prices on CDs. Second, build a website to promote their stores and even sell online to promote reputation. Third, the giants can't compete with the independents on the personal customer service and product knowledge. Have you guys noticed how much employees at the giants know about their products? Not much more than the their computers can tell them. I like it when I go to a record store and the employee knows where the CD is located and can give you information about the artist. Sometimes the employee becomes your close associate because you share common interests. Finally, like most retail stores, record stores depend on volume. Because of slim profit margins as mentioned earlier, independents must use marketing tactics to drive traffic to their stores to attract and retain a customer base. Repeat sales pay the bills. The more units you sell the more leverage you gain. As I learned in marketing, 20% of your customers give you 80% of your business. I know it's not all about money but is where the big wheels have the advantage. Independents must increase their customer base. Offer more services. Try a full page newspaper advertisement in a weekly shopper that promotes weekly new releases and sales you may have going. I can guarantee you that after doing that for awhile newspaper readers will begin to expect you to tell them what's new and you begin to gather followers. Even leave a phone number, e-mail address or website address in the ad. Hopefully, when I open my store I will benefit from customer incentive programs that will encourage them to spread the word on the good things going on in my record store. Independents are only dying off because they haven't found a way to fight back. The giants aren't better, they just have a bigger reputation because they have more money to spread their message. Independents are better because of product knowledge and customer care. Independent record stores do have a chance. They are great. Thanks for reading.

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