Nottingham Record Store Day 2023: Vinyl is on track for a comeback

The increase in vinyl sales in recent years has meant that record stores like Rough Trade have a busy weekend ahead of them.  Head of people at Rough Trade Nottingham, David Anderson, has been a part of the independent record store for 18 months. 

David, 36, travels across stores all over the country, ensuring that sales run smoothly and that customers are happy. The coming weekend is set to be a busy one for Rough Trade, after their success the previous year with queues winding around the corner of Broad Street, Nottingham. 

David said: “I will be here at six a.m. tomorrow morning and there will be a queue outside by the time we get here. We’re expecting some pretty big queues, there’s been some massive releases this year.  

“There’s a Taylor Swift record that people are excited about and there is The 1975 record that people are really excited about.” 

There has been a noticeable comeback for record and vinyl sales as the newfound popularity increases year by year, last year being the highest recorded sales for vinyl since the early 90s. 

The customer demographic has made a huge shift and is partly responsible for this modern love for vinyl again. David said: “Vinyl records are appealing to a much wider demographic now. 

“Particularly from artists such as Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, Melanie Martinez, all those kinds of artists are opening a whole new demographic up.” 

The younger audience of these pop artists has certainly led to a younger generation appreciating the joys of vinyl records.  David suggests the new success of records has been down to the physical keepsake that vinyl provides over the streaming of music. 

“Streaming has been growing so much over the past few years as well, that it’s kind of a reaction to streaming. “You get something physical you can have and that an artist has put a lot of time and effort into, vinyl records are often a ritualistic thing. 

“You take it home, open it, put it on a turntable, listen to it for the first time. People like that experience,” said, David. 

The art of using a record player and choosing a vinyl record with a decorative sleeve has become a popular selling point. Although the cost of living crisis is causing impending doom in buying habits, David believes it hasn’t scared off the vinyl fans. 

“It’s not massively impacted the how many records people are buying because we are still selling lots and lots of records.  

“I think it’s making people more conscious about what they’re buying because the price is rising. Instead, they may buy a slightly more expensive record than two cheaper records.” 

Record Store Day is a great way for Rough Trade, and other independent record stores, to really boost their sales. Head on down to Rough Trade on Broad Street, Nottingham, for a day full of good music, exclusive beer and your chance to grab some special edition records.