While plenty of music lovers are opting not to own music anymore, sending their dollars to streaming services instead, vinyl has been the golden success story of the industry recently. Other forms of purchasing music—from CDs to digital downloads—all see declines every year now, but vinyl sales grew more than 50% in 2014, and that trend is likely to continue, at least for the near future.
Recently, Billboard surveyed vinyl distributors responsible for about 80% of all sales in the US and were able to identify these retailers as the five biggest in records:
5.Trans World Entertainment
The company that owns brands like f.y.e. and Suncoast stores pulls up the rear with just 2.1% of the vinyl market in the US. The chain hasn’t been doing well lately, but vinyl sales are one sector that seem to be growing for everyone.
4. Hot Topic
The chain of mall-based stores belongs on this list, as the vast majority of their customer base values music highly. Most of the store’s merchandise—from clothes to car accessories and everything in between—is focused around musicians and bands. If younger fans are going to go to any brick and mortar location for their vinyl needs, Hot Topic is a good option. The chain comes in a close fourth with 2.4% of the market belonging to them.
3.Hastings Entertainment
The Midwestern chain comes in a surprise third with 2.7% of the vinyl market. The company operates over one hundred stores throughout parts of the US, and though records are far from their focus, they sold enough to come in third.
2.Urban Outfitters
On a call with industry analysts last year, the company’s Chief Administrative Office Calvin Hollinger claimed that it was the world’s number one vinyl retailer, saying “Music is very, very important to the Urban customer…in fact, we are the world’s number one vinyl seller.” That would have been great, had it been true.
While they do have a comfortable lead for second, they are still behind Amazon by a significant percentage. The ultra-hipster chain has a 8.1% market share in the vinyl game. Urban Outfitters does cater to the subset of the millennial crowd that is open to spending more money for music if it comes on wax, which helped them get to second place.
1. Amazon
Well this is a bit strange. A digital retailer has become the biggest seller of an older medium. The internet is what is responsible for the current downfall of the physical CD, and yet it is simultaneously propping up the vinyl record. Amazon has become a go-to for many looking to buy any and all kinds of music, and it is working its way up in the streaming world as well thanks to their Prime Music service.
The digital retailer commanded the field, owning 12.3% of the market. According to Billboard, total vinyl sales in the United States last year totaled around $325 million, which means that all those records are big business for Amazon. Their 12.3% not only makes them the only company to have a double digit market share, but that could add up to just under $40 million. Sure, that’s not necessarily a lot of money for a company that earns just shy of $90 billion per year, but it is a surprising figure to hear in 2015.
