An ordering error led Fred Meyer to buy LP versions of of R.E.M.'s latest album instead of the special CD-DVD edition for its stores. A number of stores realizing the mistake sent them back to the distributor. Others put them on the shelf and...they sold 20 LPs on the first day they were on the rack. Now, Fred Meyer is testing old-fashioned vinyl sales at 60 of its stores on the West Coast and Alaska.
Others including Amazon.com and Best Buy have also discovered a growing market for music on vinyl as consumers are drawn to the format for various reasons, including a sense of nostalgia, sound quality, the sensory thrill of dropping a needle on a record, large liner notes, etc.
The Beatles' Abbey Road is the best selling LP at Fred Meyer, but more contemporary artists including the White Stripes and the Foo Fighters have also released music on vinyl.
"It's not just a nostalgia thing," Melinda Merrill, spokeswoman for Fred Meyer, told The Associated Press. "The response from customers has just been that they like it, they feel like it has a better sound."
While sales of physical CDs have declined in recent years as more consumers turn to digital downloads, sales of LPs are way up. According to the Recording Industry Association of America, shipments of LPs jumped more than 36 percent from 2006 to 2007 to more than 1.3 million units. Nielsen SoundScan projects vinyl sales to reach 1.6 million this year.
Independent record stores have been the beneficiary of vinyl sales in recent years as many stuck with the format while large chains abandoned it.
"People have been buying vinyl all along," Cathy Hagen, manager at 2nd Avenue Records in Portland, Oregon, told the AP. "There was a fairly good supply from independent labels on vinyl all these years. As far as a resurgence, the major labels are just pressing more now."
Ms. Hagen said she isn't concerned about being pressed on the LP business by larger rivals. "I cannot see that Best Buy or Fred Meyer would order the same things we would," Hagen said. "They aren't going to be ordering the reggae, funk, punk or industrial music."
Discussion Questions: What factors do you see as being the biggest driver behind LP sales today? Do you see vinyl becoming a force again in musical recording sales or will it remain a small niche business? Is this a business that makes sense for large chains with a focus on categories other than music?