Why I Can't Monetize My Vinyl Collection

A lot of people I know talk about their collection in monetary terms; "This album was 'this amount' " and "I scored this at a garage sale for 'x' dollars and it's worth 'this much more'". This is how a lot people valuate the vinyl collection... in dollars and cents... and that's okay... for them.

I see this in just about every collecting hobby known to me; comics, toys, sports cards. In every collectible market you have two basic types of collectors; those that are money motivated and those that are passionate about the subject of the collection.

I see a lot of comic book collectors that talk about their collection in terms of where they found a key issue, how much they paid for it and how much it's worth. They are obviously money motivated collectors. Then you have comic book collectors who talk about the same key issues, but instead of price/value, they talk about key elements of the story contained in the issues, how the stories relate to other stories and so on and so forth. These are people of love the books, not so much the money.

I can see where the money mentality comes from, but I don't understand it. This isn't me judging, but I don't see how someone can collect something, call themselves a collector, if they plan to sell some day.

While, I also associate a dollar value to my records, it's really only for insurance purposes. See if I want to get these cherished pieces of my life replaced if something were to happen to them, then I have to know how much would cost to replace. Other than that, the only other time I ever associate my collection with money is in the context of sharing with my friends where they can find vinyl and not pay through the nose for it.

So while I do, at some level, monetize my collection; I never look at my collections (yes, I have a collection of Hulk and horror figures, vinyl records as well as movies and comic books) as something that can be liquidated when times get tough or if something "better" comes along. I don't I see my record collection as dollar signs;  my collection is so much more than just "Benjamins" sitting in a milk crate.

Dick Clark nailed my view of music when he said, "Music is the soundtrack of our lives." That statement mirrors my view on how important and integrated music is to my life, even though, at the time I heard it, I lacked the words to express the sentiment as well as Mr. Clark did.

See, I remember the exact song that was playing when I experience my first slow dance with a girl I had "love" feelings for at a Junior High School dance; Journey's Open Arms. It was my first encounter with the feeling of romance.

I remember the song I fell asleep to every night the summer before my freshman year, identifying with the message of escaping the prison of a menial existence and moving on to something greater, more freedom; Styx: Mr. Roboto. Moving from junior high to high school was a big life event for me, as I am sure it was for many people; with huge changes to how social and institutional interactions operated. Mr. Roboto gave me the tools to understand that I didn't have to be the kid I was in junior high that I could grow, evolve. Mr. Roboto gave me permission to be myself, to choose my own path.

Yeah, at fourteen years old, I identified with a message of escapism and boredom; shocking isn't it.

I remember all the way back in kindergarten, as a part of show and tell, singing, unabashedly I might add, Helen Ready's Delta Dawn and not understanding why everyone else in the class didn't know the lyrics to the song when I asked them to sing along with me.

I remember in the fourth grade, when it rained, and living in pacific northwest, it was always raining, the two fourth grade classes getting together and playing Greased Lightning from the Grease soundtrack, dancing the moves from the movie. None of us any good, but each of feeling connected to one another through this song and the dance movies. My first feeling of belonging socially.

Music is a connection with my past, but it is also a connection with my present and future.

My collection is, for the most part, truly autobiographical. Even music from bands that I didn't get exposed to until much later in life, like, Led Zeppelin (age 19 when I knowingly heard my first Zeppelin Song) and Black Sabbath (age 18 when I heard my first Sabbath songs) remain my musical autobiography. They remain because they not only connect me with my past, they helped define my future.

See, music connected me with who I am today by connecting me with life lessons I might not have gotten anywhere else without getting into some pretty deep trouble.

Sammy Hagar's "Can't Drive 55" taught me that life was a series of choices and each choice presented me with a reward and a consequence. I could drive faster than 55 (for those of you not in the know, 55 was the national speed limit at the time) and get the thrill of speeding as a reward, but also lose my license and my freedom as the consequence. Sammy Hagar taught me that I had to look at each choice and ask myself, "Is the reward worth more than the consequence that comes with it."

For some, Sammy may have been singing about rock 'n roll rebellion, but for me Sammy was singing about choices.

I learned how to channel my rage into writing through listening to Metallica.

I learned how to understand and interpret foreign accents and broken English by listening to Ozzy Osbourne.

I learned how to accept and move beyond my own small town origins through Springsteen and Mellencamp.

I learned about friendship through the Popeye Movie soundtrack, even though I had not yet seen the movie.

Interpol and Radiohead taught me that it is okay to feel melancholy.

Bob Marley and Boston both taught me about thinking for myself and the importance of not be a lemming.

ZZ Top taught me what it meant to be cool.

Bobby McFerrin taught me the importance of learning to chill when things get tough.

I could go on and on with that list, but I won't bore you with every little detail of who taught me what, when and where. It is safe to say that every artist I have in my collection taught me a little something about myself, shaped a little part of who I am, or at a very minimum amplified a little trait in myself and allowed me, hell even gave me permission, to embrace that part of me.

For this reason alone, I can never view my record collection as currency.

I wanted to list the top five albums I would never let slip from my collection; records that truly shaped, in one way or another, the man I am today. But, five wasn't enough... it quickly turned into a list of a hundred albums... but to keep the list readable for you, I trimmed off the last 80 and present you with this list of 20 albums I hold near and dear to my heart.

1. Popeye: Movie Soundtrack
2. Red Hot Chili Peppers: Blood , Sex, Sugar, Magic
3. Otis Redding: The History of Otis Redding
4. Prince: 1999
5. Boston: Third Stage
6. Scorpions: Blackout
7. Bobby McFerrin: Simple Pleasures
8. Black Sabbath: Black Sabbath
9. Interpol: Interpol
10. High Fidelity: Soundtrack
11. White Zombie: La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Vol. 1
12. Stevie Ray Vaughan: Couldn't Stand The Weather
13. Pink Floyd: The Wall
14. Johnny Cash: Johnny Cash At San Quentin
15. The Rolling Stones: Sticky Fingers
16. Metallica: Master of Puppets
17. Stevie Wonder: Talking Book
18. Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin I
19. Carole King: Tapestry
20. Pink Floyd: Darkside of the Moon 

I don't think poorly of those that see nothing more than dollar signs in their collection. I just have a hard time connecting with that mentality. These albums, and every album I own, have no price tags associated to them in my heart, because their value runs deeper than a dollar sign. 

I can't monetize the value of my life, therefore I can't monetize my vinyl LPs. 

Is it Worth It?

Is it worth it?

Regardless of what "IT" is, this is the question retailers and consumers should be asking every day. The question "Is it worth it?" is something we have to ask every time, it's just that sometimes we end up asking the question after the fact; "Was it worth it?" If we are asking "Was it worth it?", chances are the answer is already "No" because we are likely suffering from buyers remorse which is why we are asking the question.

Is it worth it?

Retailers need to ask the question, "Is it worth it to stock vinyl in my shop?"

Consumers need to ask the question, "Is this album worth x-dollars of my money?"

Now I have my haunts that I go digging in. A few second hand and antique shops, a local record shop and a specialty vintage shop. I go to these places because I can get great music that I love at a great price and I can discover great new music without breaking the bank. Add to this the fact that many people are just giving this stuff away, literally, and, from my view of the world, a consumer doesn't have to spend a fortune to build a large collection. This is how I have amassed a collection of over 800 LPs and only spent an average of $2.35 per record.

When I go into shops like F.Y.E., Guitar Center, Best Buy, or even a regional department/grocery store and see them selling reissues of albums for $20, $30 or even as high as $60 an album, I just shake my head as I know I either already have that album in my collection or can get it into my collection, and in both cases far cheaper than what they are asking.

Recently at Guitar Center I saw a re-issue of Black Sabbath's first album on their shelf for $26.99. I purchased an 80s reissue of the same album from that specialty vintage shop I mentioned earlier for $10.

I was at my regional department/grocery browsing the electronics section and saw a Bob Marley reissue for sale for $29.99, the same album, but an 80s release, I was able to pick up from my local record shop for $8.00.

Another issue with dealing with retailers; I go to my barber to get my hair cut. And no matter how fantastic a haircut might be, I would never go to my barber for a vasectomy. Most of the employees at retailers can't answer basic questions about the products, like the difference between 180g pressings and 200g pressings. "Uh, like the weight?"

The selections at these retailers are typically limited to only the most popular albums from the most popular artists to ensure sales, but it is still very limited audience, because those of us who aren't in the New Collector category of consumer, won't pay that much for a reissue; typically. Sure, the retailers likely move the reissued albums, but likely to the New Collector segment of consumers, those that, for the most part, don't know any better. And it should be noted that in the case of the Bob Marley example from above, the department store started carrying these albums in November in preparation for turntable sales during the Christmas holiday season. But come February, the retailer still had a handful of albums available that were steeply discounted, as in $13 each, or half off, so yeah, they weren't flying off the shelves.

One issue many retailers have in the used vinyl segment of their store, which is typically a secondary or tertiary segment (meaning it is not the primary or secondary focus of their store's sales), is that they don't know the true meaning of value when it comes to used vinyl. They see what stuff is listed for on Discogs or Ebay, then try and evaluate the condition of the vinyl based on their own "judgement" and they price accordingly. Many retailers don't get that the highest price listed is not the true value of the record, especially in the eye of the consumer.

As a result, many of the retailers, including some local record shops (like one in my hometown), have their prices on used vinyl typically set way too high. In the case of the one local record shop, I don't do business with, won't have a price on the album. Instead the owner will look each album up on Discog at the time of checkout. This particular behavior makes for a long checkout process and makes it difficult for the consumer to know what they can get when they're working within a budget.

This type of retailer pricing behavior is likely because, they don't truly understand the real market and the players in the market.

It's not like most of these retailers are carrying hard to find, exclusive releases. I have found some hard to find vinyl, in surprisingly great condition at my local second hand and thrift shops for uber-cheap, $3 or less. Stuff like a still sealed Foreigner 4 album or a copy of The Beatles white album for free from a service like Listia.

I have scored some great finds on a regular basis.

Alan Parson's Project, The Best of the Alan Parsons Project - Free - A Gift
Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin II - $1.00 - Garage Sale
Pink Floyd, Darkside of the Moon Original Pressing - $0.00 - A Gift
Rolling Stones, Sticky Fingers (Zipper Cover) - Free - Traded for a gifted Zeppelin 4 album that was a duplicate
Alice Cooper, Flush With Passion - $0.30 - Craigs List Lot
Bob Dylan, Highway 61 Revisted Original Pressing - Free - Storage Unit Giveaway
Stevie Wonder, Talking Book Original Pressing - $5.00 - Comic Con
Boston, Third Stage - $2.00 - Second Hand Store
Toto, Toto IV - $2.99 - Antique Shop
Tracy Chapman, Crossroads - $8.00 - Vintage Specialty Shop
Daft Punk, Discovery - $13.75 - Local Record Shop

The music is everywhere and it isn't typically expensive. I can buy a Led Zeppelin II re-issue album on amazon for about $20, but I was actually able to find it for $1 at a garage sale. As a consumer, why would I pay $20, unless I was a part of the New Collector segment of the collector's market. The answer to the question "Is it worth it?", in this case, is a resounding now.

This is what the my local market looks like on a regular basis and if a retailer doesn't know this market, it is hard to answer the question, "Is it worth it?" And if you don't understand your target consumer, the answer to "Is it worth it" become exponentially harder to answer.

If a retailer is going to carry vinyl, they really need to know how to answer, "Is it worth it?"

Is it worth the coveted sales floor space for a few sales a week?

Is it worth the effort of lugging, organizing, straightening, reorganizing all that heavy cumbersome vinyl in the hopes of selling a record or two a day. Let's face it, vinyl consumers will put an album back where ever they see fit if they change their minds.

Can I make my prices competitive enough to compete in the market for the targeted consumers?

In the end, vinyl, even just a few milk crates of it, takes a lot of coveted space and in the retail world; a world where space equals money. If a product can't sell enough to pay for the overhead of the space it is consuming, the retailer will lose in the end.

If the vinyl is too affordable for the consumer, it may sell a lot, but there isn't enough profit margin to cover the cost. If it's too expensive, nobody buys it and again there isn't enough profit margin to cover the cost. There is a fine line for a retailer to walk to ensure they are capable of generating enough money to pay the overhead. A retailer can't expect to sell an album, let's say Carole King's Tapestry as an example, for $40 (the price listed on Discog's website) when I have found three of them at one of my three local Goodwill stores for $2.99, in the last two months, two of which I purchased (one for myself and another for gift for a friend).

For the most part, people don't go to a fabric store to buy a gaming system the same way they don't typically go to grocery stores to by vinyl. Most consumers go to comic con to buy comics, art and action figures... not vinyl. If it's there, you may sell some, but that isn't your target audience.

As a retailer your decision to carry vinyl may seem to make logical business sense when you simply look at just how hot vinyl sales are right now; and they are hot. But, the retailer will find out soon enough that the profit margins on vinyl's aren't as lucrative as they may seem on the surface.

I will, on rare occasion, drive sixty miles to dig for vinyl at a record store because there is a "huge" volume vinyl for me to dig through. Conversely, I won't drive ten or even twenty miles just to dig through a couple of bins at a random shop. I am sure I am not alone in that. If I happen to be at the shop, sure I will take a look, but I likely won't make it a point to add it to my usual digging routine, especially if Boz Scaggs is the best album in the bin.

Sorry... Boz is a fine musical artist, but I had to use someone as an example. And Boz is a great example. He is everywhere. In every garage sale, every flea market, swap meet, second hand bin across the planet you will find Boz. So as a retailer you need to make sure you are stocking not only the music people want, but the music that people don't have such ready access to purchase.

There was the time that I came across six bins of vinyl in a little boutique shop in the downtown mall. My wife dragged me in there and I found Houses of the Holy for $5. We purchased like six albums that day and nothing else. Would this shop become a regular stop me on my digging adventures? Likely not, as I score the six best albums they had and they aren't likely refreshing their stock anytime soon, because they are a boutique shop, not a record store.

This just goes to show that from a consumer perspective, "Is it worth it" is a lot more complex to answer.

Depending on the type, or combination of types, of collector(s) you may be, the question, "Is it worth it?" may have a different answer for numerous reasons. For a Music Collector, a limited edition pressing of an album that is $60 may not be worth it, but for the Economist Collector, it may be.

And the answer to "Is it worth it?" may change depending on when it is asked. For example; the day after payday when disposable cash flow may be in abundance, the consumer might be more willing to answer yes to an album that is $30, where the answer may be no the very next day when you find out your roof needs replaced.

Hell, there are times when my own answer to "Is it worth it?" is no for a $2 album.

There are many reason for a purchase to be worth it or not for a consumer and this adds to the complexity of the answer for the retailer to answer their own question; "Is it worth it to carry vinyl".

Did you scroll to the bottom of this posting to see how long it is? Did you do so to determine if you had time to read the whole thing? Or maybe to see if it was worth it? Or did you just starting reading to end up asking yourself, "Was it worth it?"

Well, was it?