Last year I wrote a blog leading up to Vinyl Record Day about the resurgence of Vinyl. At that time I wrote about vinyl being pushed to the brink of extinction by a superior (that is of course up for debate) technology, the CD. The Cassette, followed by the CD, followed again by the MP3 seemed poised to make vinyl a thing only found at flea markets and yard sales. Then a funny thing happened. Vinyl sales started to increase. Of course, these increases were never going to threaten the digital industry giants but it was an increase none the less.
Since writing that blog last year and not surprisingly, vinyl has further accelerated its growth rate, perhaps even more than some had expected. As reported by Billboard (US), vinyl sales were up 53% over the same period last year in Quarter one. To many, this is simply amazing! To the writer and our Buyers, it’s what we both hoped for and anticipated. Again, borrowed from Billboard (Thanks guys!), vinyl sales have increased 260% since 2009 selling an astounding 9.2 million units. Of that 9.2 million albums sold, some titles recorded sales of over 100,000 units. The Beatles “Abbey Road” and Bon Iver’s “For Emma Forever Ago” were two of those albums. I’d like to mention that both of those are available at your local London Drugs! Billboard’s top 5 titles for 2015 year to date are as follows: (also available at London Drugs).
- Taylor Swift, 1989 (34,000)
- Sufjan Stevens, Carrie & Lowell (32,000)
- Arctic Monkeys, AM (27,000)
- Alabama Shakes, Sound & Color (26,000)
- Miles Davis, Kind of Blue (23,000)
Recognizing the trend before it really took off, our Audio/Video buyers here at London Drugs pushed for our stores to be a leader in North American vinyl sales. (Admittedly, they’ve been long time, avid vinyl supporters which most certainly played a part). Starting in 2012 with Pink Floyd’s “The Wall”, we have since grown our total catalogue to over 700 titles! When in your local London Drugs you can browse through approximately 450 titles. If that store doesn’t satisfy your hunger, you can go online and peruse through roughly 250 additional titles. I’d also like to add that we will ship your online vinyl order to you free when you spend $25 or more all throughout this summer!
I can talk about vinyl for hours. Some of my best memories from my early years were playing vinyl with my dad and listening to him talk about tracking down a rare album. It is a unique, organic sound that cannot be replicated, it’s also a physical experience that digital simply cannot replicate, starting with the hunt for a title, the purchase and anticipation of playback, the opening, and the physical playback while simultaneously enjoying the album art and liner notes. If you don’t understand what I mean, stop by your local London Drugs and ask a Service Specialist to spin some vinyl for you. It should all make sense shortly after the needle drops.
Josh Halliday
@LD_StVital
