November 4, 2007
Two Young Entrepreneurs Unafraid of Risk of Going on Records
By Kyle Kennedy
LAKELAND | As risky ventures go, buying an independent record store at an uncertain time for the music industry would seem to rank high on the list of "don'ts."
Yet Robert Tucker and James Whelan did it anyway, purchasing Evolution Music Movies Games a year and a half ago as their first major entrepreneurial foray. Evidence suggests it was an incredibly bold move, given the punishing climate for CD sales that has shuttered giant chains like Tower Records and and wiped out thousands of "indies."
But even as buyers flock to the Internet, Tucker and Whelan say Evolution has a bright future in Lakeland. That's mainly because of the store's loyal customer following, and the increasingly rare experience it delivers for those who cherish independent record shops as holy sites of pop culture.
"There's an element of this business that defies logic," Tucker said. "We wouldn't have bought this if profit was our only motivation, so emotion has to be part of it."
Nestled inside a shopping center near the intersection of South Florida Avenue and Edgewood Drive, Evolution is easily identifiable from the slew of rock band posters covering its front windows. On a recent afternoon, Tucker and Whelan are taking turns at the register and mixing with customers while the Rocky Horror Picture Show plays silently on a row of wall-mounted TVs.
Incense burns near a speaker pumping reggae music by the renowned Peter Tosh.
"People just love going to a record store. They like going to a place that's not cookie-cutter like a thousand other chains," says Tucker, 33.
Evolution's short history dates to 2000, when it opened in downtown Lakeland before moving to its current spot about four years ago. Owner Beau Miller eventually sent out an e-mail to gauge interest in franchise opportunities, but sold the business outright when it caught Tucker's eye.
The Lakeland Realtor, whose family owns Tucker's Southside Package & Lounge, partnered with fellow Lakeland High School graduate and local musician Whelan and acquired the shop in 2006.
"We wanted to get into the music business one way or another," said Whelan, 32, who also had worked with Tucker in real estate.
But both knew they were facing unfavorable odds.
Downloadable music Web sites, legitimate and otherwise, had already carved a significant chunk out of the traditional CD sales once dominated by mega chains. Pressure also came from "big-box" retailers who could afford to sell music at a loss.
California-based Wherehouse Music blamed illegal downloads when it filed for bankruptcy in early 2003, and the parent company of Sam Goody did the same when it filed for bankruptcy in early 2006. Sacramento-based Tower Records finally closed its stores a year ago.
The independents fared even worse, with roughly 1,200 closing down nationwide since 2003, according to the Almighty Institute of Music Retail, a Los Angeles-based marketing and information company. The group says that just 2,600 independently-owned shops remain in the U.S.
"There's no way they can compete selling 'the hits,' because the mass merchants are selling below list price," said Joel Oberstein, Almighty's president. "But the way they can compete is to be a little more targeted in their selling and be niche-oriented."
Lakeland had its own cautionary tale in Woodpecker Records, opened in 1993 by Mulberry High School graduate Jeremy Brumley and sold in 2004 to an Alabama company that relocated the business.
"Before the Internet, small retailers drove the underground music scene. We would tell our customers, 'check this band out.' The store was basically their Google," said Brumley, 33, now the general manager of Bonefish Grill in Brandon. "But what happened with the Internet was as it emerged we could no longer give that vital information." But in the absence of Woodpecker and other alternatives, Evolution has managed to cultivate a strong following, Whelan says.
"If you give me two bands you listen to, I can turn you on to five others," he said. "I recognize most of my customers when they walk through the door. Half of them have my cell phone number."
Although Evolution is currently toughing out its slowest period yet, Tucker said the business has been profitable thanks to a diverse array of customers and a broad music selection that might feature major acts such as Kanye West and Bruce Springsteen alongside lesser-known talents like Ween and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
In addition, the 1,800-square-foot shop supplements its new and used music sales with DVDs and video games.
Tucker obviously believes in his audience. While continuing to grow Evolution, he also opened the vinyl-only Grinder Music in the Dixieland Mini-Mall last year.
If need be, Evolution will adjust its business model to stay viable, Tucker says, but he doesn't foresee that happening any time soon.
"Our customers appreciate that. They know we're here to stick it out," he said. "Being an independent, you're almost like a community asset."
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Article List
• November 21, 2013 - New York Times - Records Are Dying? Not Here• March 27, 2013 - Glendale News-Press - It's a matter of record: Burbank's Atomic Records and Backside
• December 30, 2012 - Detroit News - As one record shop closes, vinyl music plays on in another
• April 20, 2012 - Boston.com - New vinyl album releases give record stores a kick
• November 20, 2011 - Salon.com - In an iTunes age, do we need the record store?
• June 9, 2011 - NJ.com - Curmudgeon Records closes its doors for good
• April 16, 2011 - Wall Street Journal - One-Day Record-Store Revival
• February 1, 2011 - Charlottesville News & Arts - Plan 9 Changes Location
• August 13, 2010 - The Tennesean - Anita Wadhwani: Nashville indie record stores' sales spin in right direction
• January 3, 2010 - Delaware News Journal - Delaware music shops get creative to compete with downloads, chain music stores
• September 24, 2009 - Los Angeles Times - L.A. independent record shop is still in a groove
• August 20, 2009 - CNN Money - You can make money off online music
• June 14, 2009 - New York Times - Retailing Era Closes With Music Megastore
• May 13, 2009 - Medill Reports - Resurgence in vinyl helps record store in recession
• April 26, 2009 - Los Angeles Times - In a digital age, vinyl albums are making a comeback
• April 18, 2009 - Charlotte Observer - Record stores band together
• April 17, 2009 - Detroit News - Record Store Day spins profits and good beats at Metro Detroit shops
• April 17, 2009 - Associated Press - Record Store Day celebrates indie retailers
• April 10, 2009 - Detroit News - Street Corner Music moving to Oak Park plaza
• April 10, 2009 - Toledo Free Press - New record store shakes up Adams Street
• January 8, 2009 - OC Register - Closing date for Virgin Megastore at The Block
• October 28, 2008 - Reuters - AC/DC back in "Black" with global smash
• September 23, 2008 - Chicago Daily Herald - Independent music stores haven't yet disappeared from suburbia
• June 23, 2008 - New York Times - For Tom Petty Fans, the True Sound of Vinyl, Also Captured on a CD
• April 19, 2008 - Lafayette Journal Courier - For some, record stores live on
• April 19, 2008 - New Jersey Star Ledger - It's Record Store Day. Play it again, Sam!
• April 18, 2008 - New York Times - Record Stores Fight to Be Long-Playing
• April 18, 2008 - Dallas Morning News - Retailers hope Record Store Day turns up volume at mom-and-pop shops
• April 16, 2008 - Timeout New York - Platter Up
• December 27, 2007 - Los Angeles Times - Virgin Megastore to close shop
• December 16, 2007 - New York Times - For a "Dinosaur," an Exuberant Second Life (Looney Tunes Reopens)
• December 3, 2007 - Detroit Free Press - The same old song: Music store closing
• November 7, 2007 - Washington Post - Eagles soar past Britney to top of charts
• November 4, 2007 - The Ledger - Two Young Entrepreneurs Unafraid of Risk of Going on Records
• August 20, 2007 - Billboard - Almighty Taps Hans As VP
• June 29, 2007 - ABC News - Long Live the Record Store
• June 28, 2007 - Orange County Weekly - Locals Only
• June 13, 2007 - Reuters - McCartney's Starbucks album heats up U.S. charts
• June 9, 2007 - Billboard - Commentary: Retail Recovery
• May 9, 2007 - Columbia Free Times - High Fidelity
• March 22, 2007 - NARM Awards - Almighty Retail Named NARM Related Supplier Finalist For Third Consecutive Year
• March 16, 2007 - Chortler - Shout! Factory Has Revamped Its Website
• March 9, 2007 - PhillyBurbs.com - Internet killed the record store?
• March 4, 2007 - Sacramento Bee - New groove for Solomon
• February 28, 2007 - USA Today - Exclusives aim to pull music fans into stores
• February 28, 2007 - New York Newsday - Latin record shops thrive despite changes in music business
• February 23, 2007 - Montpelier Bridge - Buch Spieler Sails On Despite a Music Industry Decline
• November 20, 2006 - Austin 360 - In Austin, Niche Indies Rule
• October 20, 2006 - Sacramento Bee - Tower brand could survive
• October 15, 2006 - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review - Tables have turned on record stores
• October 14, 2006 - Sacramento Bee - Small labels lose valuable ally in Tower
• October 6, 2006 - Desert Sun - Record Alley remodels
• September 27, 2006 - Music & Copyright - Niche Marketing of CD albums continues to rise in the US and Physical Sales overall decline
• September 22, 2006 - CNN.com - Indie stores confront a new era
• September 19, 2006 - New York Newsday - 34 years, and that's not all, folks
• August 18, 2006 - The Roanoke Times - Plan 9 Music puts new spin on 5 Record Exchange stores
• August 3, 2006 - The Hollywood Reporter - Nervous music retailers face hazy digital future
• July 16, 2006 - New York Times - The Graying of the Record Store
• July 13, 2006 - Rolling Stone - The iTunes Holdouts
• July 11, 2006 - Roanoke Times - Record store's "last dance"
• July 5, 2006 - Port Townsend and Jefferson County Leader - Quimper Sound moves, expands to change with times
• June 6, 2006 - Billboard - NARM Nominations Announced
• May 10, 2006 - Detroit MetroTimes - Out of the Groove
• March 18, 2006 - Billboard - Indies in a bind
• January 16, 2006 - Los Angeles Business Journal - Slipped Discs
• January 6, 2006 - Los Angeles Times - Indie record stores doing slow fade out
• December 26, 2005 - Los Angeles Times - The Music Stops for Indie Shop
• December 1, 2005 - Rolling Stone - Fall Sales Dry Up
• October 13, 2005 - Desert Sun - Music snobs rejoice: Independent record stores still thrive in desert
• September 12, 2005 - Salt Lake Tribune - Twilight for Starbound Records
• August 18, 2005 - New York Post - Oldies are now singing a new tune - Music stores go digital
• July 2005 - Rolling Stone - Record Biz Still Sinking
• June 18, 2005 - Billboard - NARM Noms Announced
• March 21, 2005 - CMJ - Hart of the Matter
• February 16, 2005 - MSN - Genius Loves Company
• October 12, 2004 - Rolling Stone - Wal-Mart wants $10 CDs
• July 10, 2004 - Billboard - Almighty Institute To The Rescue
• January 14, 2004 - Creative Loafing Charlotte - Manifest Destiny
• December 29, 2003 - New York Times - on the rise of mass marketers
• November 13, 2003 - Rolling Stone - Best Buy snags rights to band's new DVD
• October 9, 2003 - USA Today - Best Buy wins sales rights to Rolling Stones DVD box set
• October 6, 2003 - Reuters - Stones Paint It Black For Retailers
• May 31, 2003 - Billboard - Retail Track
• May 9, 2003 - Hits - Rerap
