Monday, September 29, 2014

Urban Outfitters: The no. 1 seller of vinyl globally

Forbes reports that Urban Outfitters Claims It's Now The No. 1 Seller Of Vinyl In The World.

"... On a call with industry analysts this past week, Urban Outfitter’s Chief Administrative Office Calvin Hollinger claimed that the company was the biggest seller of vinyl on the planet, saying, “Music is very, very important to the Urban customer … in fact, we are the world’s number one vinyl seller.”

... To be fair, there isn't a lot of competition, as not many chains carry vinyl. In 2012, independent record stores were collectively responsible for 64% of all vinyl sales in the United States. Just last year, both Target and Whole Foods decided to jump on the trend and start offering shelf space for select titles, but sales aren’t significant yet...

"... The company says that part of it’s success in the vinyl game comes from their innovative stocking strategy. Urban Outfitters doesn’t actually buy the records it sells, but rather “rents” shelf space—both physically and digitally—to a team of over 100 vendors, which helps the retailer maximize profit potential while giving an unmatched opportunity to artists looking to push their LPs."

UPDATED Oct 1 2014:  from Billboard: Urban Outfitters doesn't sell the most vinyl 
"...after reading widespread reports repeating the claim, Billboard surveyed music labels, their distributors, and wholesalers, accounting for about 80% of the U.S. music market. The end result: Urban Outfitters is like Avis, and has to try harder.

A Billboard analysis shows that Amazon is the largest seller of vinyl in the U.S., with about 12.3% market share, followed by Urban Outfitters with 8.1% market share..."

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