Happy Record Store Day

I was not able to go this year because of trying to cut my expenses in today's uncertain economic climate. Didn't get the same bonus I have gotten over the past few years, and have more household expenses I am trying to deal with. We cut our Direct TV last week. Buying less at the grocery. And so on. I will say having gone the past two years, I saw a lot of guys up front first in line who were probably running out to FleaBay to put the limited release LPs up for sale, like the scalpers who buy up all the good tickets to live shows. That turns me off. I think it is good for the industry to get the buzz out about vinyl, but let's all be honest, this is a marketing effort designed to sell product at much higher list prices. Limited supply creates demand. Econ 101.

Swanny...I agree with everything you said, except the assumption that the guys in the front of the line were flipping the items on Ebay. You don't know that for a fact.

While I don't approve of that either and really don't like Ebay that well, I was able to find the four titles that my store didn't get on Ebay for exactly the same amount as in the store and a couple were even less money, (even with shipping) because I didn't have to pay sales tax. So not all sellers on Ebay are jackholes.

Most people don't know that the dealers do not know what they will receive for RSD. They put in their orders and don't know what they get until they open the boxes. I know quite a few record store owners and most say that they only get a 50%-60% fill for RSD.

This is no different than wine collectors or art collectors or rare car collectors or really most any other type of collector. Limited supply DOES create demand.

I much looked to score a copy of Dave Matthews live lp set, but.....
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=Rsd&_ipg=200&_sop=16&_osacat=176985&_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=Rsd&_sacat=176985
And several of these very limited pressings emerged on eBay days prior to Saturday's RSD.
The local vendor did restrict purchases of limited release lps to one per customer. Yet, with the low number of pressings the resaleable value may be turning the event into a scalper's treasure trove.

MoFi, Sour Grapes? I am sorry but standing in line is preferable to you than roaming freely and listening to local bands play? (what they had done in previous years) A business knowing that their biggest business day of the year and doing nothing about their single check out point? How do you know what I was miffed about? Your diatribe about me not getting there early for my personal gratification is pure crap. I had no specific purchase in mind, just wanted to browse around and if a release interested me, I would pick one up. You and I are concerned about totally different experiences. No "woe is me".

Surprise, Surprise! MoFi, you are not the only loyal record store buyer on this site. I imagine many are loyal customers to one shop or another on this site besides you and I. Yes, I regularly go to local record shops and some are better than others.

Stores in my area may be different than the stores in your area. Oh, but I am sure you know every store in existence.

I was not able to attend the other local stores because of the time I spent there was much more than I had anticipated. According to some of my buddies, the other stores handled the crowds well. I know most of these establishments are small business, but shouldn't they be more attuned to their customers's needs?
The point is that for a once a year event you need to put your best foot forward.

I support a number of stores here in So Cal/OC and they were very happy to pre-order and set aside my requests. I got 10 out of 11 albums that day. I spend ALL my music money with small independent stores and the staff know me by name. Best of all, I am constantly being exposed to new music. Record Store Day is a perfect way to bring focus to this class of merchant, who are not robot recommendation engines of the death star from Seattle.They provide a true service and are a joy to visit and buy from. I pity the collectors who resell on the secondary market. The items are truly cool, one of the kind stuff and worthy of a place in my portfolio.