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| From | "Jaimie Vernon" <bullseyecanada@hotmail.com> |
| Subject | Re: Village Voice: Real record stores open, close, move, struggle, and thrive |
| Date | Wed, 02 Jun 2004 02:34:24 -0400 |
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At Date: Tue, 1 Jun 2004 10:32:30 Bryan wrote:
>That doesn't always trickle down to individual record shops.
>Pat Feeney, owner of Main Street Music in Philadelphia, says
>that May was his store's weakest month since it opened over
>12 years ago. "In the last five months or so, there have been
>days when I feel like I'm selling hula hoops," he says. Main
>Street specializes in what's known as AAA (adult album
>alternative); the first Norah Jones album was his biggest seller
>ever. AAA fans, though, tend to be older, more sedentary
>types who prefer one-click ordering to rummaging around a
>record store-which means online stores like amazon.com are
>taking over from the brick-and-mortar type. And the street
>where Feeney's store is located is in decline.
>
>Small stores that rely on major-label releases have also been
>hit by narrowing profit margins and fluctuating costs. Universal
>Music Group, which made a big deal out of dropping its retail
>(and wholesale) prices in October, raised some again recently
>-quietly, and without announcing it beforehand, so retailers
>didn't have an opportunity to stock up. And independent
>retailers who sell a lot of mainstream music live in terror of a
>Best Buy opening nearby: The electronics giant sells new CDs
>"literally for less than we pay for them," Feeney says.
Then why isn't this guy selling what Best Buy doesn't? In fact, why has this
narrow minded businessman painted himself into an AAA formatted corner? If
he can't survive selling Norah Jones albums then start selling Spike Jones
or Albert Jones or Carmine Jones CDs too?
Sorry, I just don't get it. It's like going to a bakery that only sells
bagels....or only sells white bread.
[Mr. Rogers voice:] Diversify. I know you can do it!
Jaimie Vernon,
President, Bullseye Records
http://www.bullseyecanada.com
Author, Canadian Pop Music Encyclopedia
http://www.canoe.ca/JamMusicPopEncycloPages
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