Moonlight Records and the Rise of Vinyl

Moonlight Records and the Rise of Vinyl

By Martyn Coppack

It has been a tough few years all round for small businesses. More so for the ones whose main income has been generated from music sales. Independent record stores around the UK have gone into liquidation or have upped sticks and taken up an online presence only. It is refreshing to see that through all this Moonlight Records in Wrexham has continued to serve the record buying public and is now reaping the benefits of an increased interest in vinyl.

We all know what happened to the beloved 12” and 7” discs that we used to love. First little shiny CD’s replaced them with the promise of better sound quality and then the noughties saw the rise of the download generation. Music was no longer perceived as an object to treasure and hold, it was simply a bunch of files sitting on some-ones hard drive.

There has been a resurgence of late in sales of vinyl records. Why this is could be down to any number of factors but probably the most important is that music buyers have finally realised that while it may be easier to download a file it is in no way a comparison to actually owning a physical object. Coupled in with this is interest in Record Store Day and any number of artists releasing or re-releasing their music onto vinyl. Once again vinyl sales are on the rise which is all the more remarkable considering other formats are dropping.

Moonlight Records has been trading now since 1988. Brian, who owns the shop, has managed to keep a turnover going and is now reaping the awards of being one of two shops in Wrexham that stock and sell vinyl records. In the last eighteen months Brian has seen sales of vinyl growing and runs a brisk trade in exchange. This is part of a wider picture now across the UK and beyond as people rediscover the joys of the black disc.

When asked if there was a certain group of people who were buying vinyl it is surprising to hear that it is a wide mix of people. Stating that his biggest selling artists were The Rolling Stones and in particular, The Beatles it is noteworthy that the majority of buyers are teenagers. Whether this is a nostalgia thing or a current trend due to events such as Record Store Day is something for analysts to look into but it is certainly gratifying to the discerning music lover that vinyl is on the rise.

When asked about the trading in the current economic climate Brian said that whilst it is tough, it is all down to how savvy you are. There is a constant need to keep things interesting and finding new ways to promote your stock. In a time when even the biggest stores are going under it is refreshing to see that a small business like this continues to buck the trend.

You can find more of Martyn’s reviews, article and interviews on his blog at http://partypirate-recordcollecting.blogspot.com/