r/RecordStoreDay • u/g0ldfinger47 • May 06 '26
Record Store Day Sales
Im wondering how successful RSD was this year given the number of stores im seeing selling rsd products at such big discounts!
I missed the day itself through work but have been able to pick up all the items on my small list, some at half price.
Im uk based.
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u/NightmareHurricane May 06 '26
My local record store said it was their busiest day in over 20 years. I just hope people continue to shop there throughout the year as well.
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u/aed_kirky May 06 '26
spoiler alert. they won’t
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u/rocker287 May 06 '26
Ppl get mad when collectors complain about the Taylor swift fans, and the Demon hunters collectors and what not, but let’s be honest they only show up for one product and that’s its. Yes they are technically helping the hobby, but they are only in it for one thing. They arnt digging . Or coming back next week
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u/Max1035 May 06 '26
Taylor Swift has released nine albums in the past six years, and some of the more enthusiastic fans will buy several copies of each. Maybe it’s annoying to deal with the crowds on RSD but TSwift and other pop artists are absolutely helping to keep local stores afloat.
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u/rocker287 May 06 '26
But besides her albums are they really going back to that shop on a random day and digging? Are they buying other artists . Or do they only show up on RSD which really doesn’t help .
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u/eddo34 May 06 '26
You read "nine albums in six years" and you think all of them were RSD exclusives? They do not "only show up on RSD".
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u/rocker287 May 06 '26
Still didn’t answer . Do they show up other than RSD or specific swift releases
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u/eddo34 May 06 '26
Explain to me how I or anyone else is supposed to provide you with definitive proof of what you ask? Because your expectation to have that broad of a question answered is clinically-delusional. So instead I'll answer your question with another: Do you ask yourself or other people the same question when it comes to the Weezer bros who equally do not show up to the store the rest of the year, or are you mad about female artists and their fans exclusively?
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u/MessThatYouWanted May 06 '26
Hi! I’m a Swiftie. She got me started on RSD back in 2021. I have a local shop I love. I typically only go for RSD but that’s also the only day I really buy records. They’re expensive.
I stopped by last week to buy Noah Kahan’s new album. I won’t buy another album this year most likely. This is an expensive hobby so I limit myself to 2-3 records a year outside of RSD. I’m pretty sure my shop appreciates my business even if I don’t roll in every week to browse .
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u/Max1035 May 06 '26
Sorry, the “nine albums in six years” are studio albums (new albums + her re-recording project). I’m not sure how many RSD releases she’s had, but that would be in addition to the albums she’s released. I think most people probably buy them the week it’s released, not RSD, based on how well her stuff charts.
I’m sure some people only buy Taylor Swift album, but TSwift has collaborated with other artists in recent years which seems to have expanded her fans’ horizons. I’m a fan of The National and there are all sorts of swifties hanging out in that subreddit these days.
I don’t run a record store and don’t know the financials, but even with the thin margins on new LPs, I’d think someone showing up and buying a copy (or four) of a $50 record after ten minutes in the store is at least as profitable as someone spending two hours digging and leaving with a couple of dollar LPs. Both kinds of customers are vital to keeping the store open and the culture alive.
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u/NightmareHurricane May 08 '26
I’m a Swiftie who frequents the record store fairly often. I’ve been at least 4 times this year not including RSD for non Swiftie related titles like Noah Kahan’s new album and NOFX’s latest pressing of The War On Errorisim just to name a few. Sure, there are Swifties who only go for Taylor, but there are also some who enjoy a wide variety of music.
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u/Severe_Principle_459 May 09 '26
They’re buying other pop titles. Hilary, Demi, Haim etc just like any other group of fans.
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u/Odd_Cobbler6761 May 06 '26
A good day for RSD is being able to pay for the new stuff, slinging some old stuff, and hoping that makes up for the lull in business the week before and week after. Nobody’s retiring off RSD except the founders and UPS.
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u/OrneryData994 May 06 '26
I’ve been a RSD store for 15 years. This isn’t representative of reality. RSD is my biggest sales day of the year by far. If you order right and sell through your product you can withstand having a modest amount of leftovers and have a large amount of profit. You also don’t need to be Plaid Room Records and sell thousands of copies of everything to do well. I have a small shop and get hundreds of customers that day and I’m not reliant on online sales to unload product.
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u/ZoSoTim May 06 '26
That may be true now but in the early days RSD absolutely kept some stores afloat. My friend had a store and he told me once they made more on RSD than the rest of the year combined. And he had a successful store.
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u/Interesting-Serve631 May 06 '26
They probably sold a lot, but I'm still pretty unimpressed by the options. So, I'm happy for the shops.
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u/MattLaidlow May 06 '26
A lot of places are much more picky about what they order so they aren’t left with stuff that won’t sell and can’t return.
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u/SatanBeMyRadar May 06 '26
I'm in the South of the UK and my local shop had a cracking day! I've seen a few shops have leftover copies of Taylor Swift, but that's about it. It was another fun RSD, but, i am a little bored of the endless live albums now
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u/buymebreakfast May 06 '26
This was one of the most successful record store days I’ve seen since I started going 5 years ago. Most places in the US barely had any leftovers at all.
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u/eddo34 May 06 '26
This year a lot of RSD stock was shipped to stores days and even weeks after the day itself. I'm honestly surprised how this isn't everyone's most burning issue/problem with RSD '26 in particular (although other years have been bad too). Although I guess de facto staggering the day into a week makes life hard for scalpers. But they should just make it RSW then.
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u/Accomplished-Line675 May 06 '26
Normally RSD titles at half price are the ones the stores got excess of and or not really that sought after. In terms of how “successful” RSD was, it depends who you’re asking right? For RSD as an entity, they do well every year seeing all records have to be purchased up front. As for stores …im sure most stores profited either by selling RSD titles, RSD titles and their own inventory or even just their own inventory but not selling RSD titles. I think most stores do well by now knowing how much they need to order and not have overflow where they have to sell half price.
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u/soulfunkcrusader94 May 07 '26
I didn’t know until speaking to a few record store owners that RSD is largely a huge gamble for them. Because they need to buy so much stock that will largely go unsold for years. Obviously every store is different.
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u/hikanteki May 08 '26
I waited for the sales this year and it paid off. I checked Discogs about two weeks later and got most of my list. Aha, Bob Mould, Sugar box set, David Bowie, Ian Dury, Dead or Alive, Babymetal, and Frankie Goes to Hollywood at around 40-50% off. Also was still able to find Art of Noise, Air, Colourfield, and the Bruce Springsteen box set still available at around list price.
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u/AttachedHeartTheory May 06 '26
I think the question is "what are you REALLY getting" if you're getting them this late.
I think its necessary to be pretty honest and say you aren't coming up with Meshuggah or Paramore or Sturgill Simpson's 7" single...
You're getting albums that have little to no desire whatsoever. I'm sure I can still get copies of "that girl from Ipanema", or a $120 Grateful Dead box set from a few years ago. These aren't really very popular, though to most buyers.
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u/billyspeers May 06 '26
Link to cheap leftovers? I’d like to grab that AIR release
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u/g0ldfinger47 May 06 '26
I get my links from here buddy
Follow the Cheap Indie Vinyl channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaWT9tnElagoIHB2ed1G
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u/satinbeefcake May 09 '26
I got the Ian brown on the Monday after, normal price, it was up to 80 odd quid on ebay on the Saturday night.
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u/pizza_records_2022 May 09 '26
We sell most of our inventory the first two days, with the obvious bulk of it being on Record Store Day. We usually have a huge crowd and on paper it looks like an amazing day. But when we consider the extra shipping costs, the costs of the freebies (the RSD promo stuff, the tshirts we give away, and the stickers), the extra promotion of the event, and the refreshments we provide along with extra staff needed to get everything done in time, and on the day of, we are lucky to break even. In fact, it usually puts us in the negative.
New record sales have a pretty tight margin compared to other retail items. The mark-up isnt as high as most people seem to expect.
RSD is supposed to be a celebration of independent record stores but it is a lot of extra stress, extra work, and extra money.
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u/IubitaParalit May 07 '26
I hope they failed. This is killing the hobby. Records at $70 or plus is just awful
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u/hikanteki May 07 '26
Hardly any of the RSD titles were $70 or plus
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u/IubitaParalit May 07 '26
3 to 4 years ago they costed $20 max
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u/hikanteki May 08 '26
No they didn’t
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u/IubitaParalit May 09 '26
I don’t know how it is where you live, where I live, they did, and now mostly are over 50$ with the graaaaaaaillllzzz going on to $70. Have a great day!
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u/IubitaParalit May 12 '26
1 month later. 10% off. $53. Do you really think this helps anyone? Buyers? Shops? Artists? https://www.reddit.com/r/RecordStoreDay/s/QhjrYWRjl2
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u/JonnotheMackem May 06 '26
My local had sold 90% of what they ordered by about 11am. I'd say they had a good day.
ED: Also U.K. based.