For a brief time this fall, a sign reading “lost my lease” was posted outside of Old School Records, a Forest Park staple that has been in business for more than 21 years.
Peter Gianakopoulos, the owner, put up the sign when he fell behind on his rent for the months of August and September after a “very tough year” for the store.
The store managed to survive, and the sign has since been removed from the facade of Old School Records. But that, Gianakopoulos said, doesn’t change the challenges that record stores are facing locally and indeed across the world.
He said that music streaming services is the main culprit.
During his more than two decades as a business owner, Gianakopoulos has noticed many ups and downs in the business of selling records. Most recently he says, music streaming has posed a direct competition for many stores that sell vinyl records, CDs and cassette tapes.
In spite of this adversity, Gianakopoulos said, record stores have persevered thanks to dedicated customers, a revival of vinyl in popular cultures and, perhaps most notably, the sense of community that the stores offer.
“There’s a lot of culture, a lot of history of music and movies,” Gianakopoulos said. “It’s kind of like a barbershop in the way that people come in and just hang out all day sometimes and just talk.”
Gianakopoulos said that there are certain things that record stores offer that just can’t be recreated. As a graduate of Berklee College of Music in Boston, Gianakopoulos feels that he can offer music knowledge and expertise to his customers.
He also works to tailor his stock to wide demographics, selling everything from Sabrina Carpenter to Mozart.
“I’ll still get unique stuff in and put it out there for people,” Gianakopoulos. “They’re still coming in and being very surprised to find amazing things they want. The general market of the new stuff that comes out probably is kind of tapering or evening off a bit. It’s just the way the economy is.”
He added, “I’m just hoping the economy kicks around. It was a lot harder this year.”.
Old Schools Records isn’t the only local record store working to meet the challenges of streaming services by emphasizing community.
Alan Heffelfinger, owner of Oak Park Records, has been dealing with the competition of music streaming since he opened his business in 2004. Despite that known threat, he decided to open his business anyway.
“It was just a dream of mine to have a store, so I went with it,” Heffelfinger said.
He said that there will always be a customer base for vinyl records.
“Streaming is still hugely popular, and I have no problem with it,” Heffelfinger said. “There are people who listen to music in two or three different ways. They’re just music junkies. They’re just happy to be able to tap their foot, not really concerned about how it’s coming across to them, whether it’s a radio, earbuds or a record player.”
Heffelfinger will be celebrating his store’s 20 anniversary in November and agreed that record stores offer a powerful sense of community.
“Over the years, I’ve created something great,” Heffelfinger said. “There are customers that I’ve gotten to know over the years, and I’ve really noticed, especially in the last five years, a lot of customers of mine that are walking into the store and recognizing the other customers.”
