LECTURE 8: CURATION IN RECORD SHOPS

Question 1

How are digital tech democratising the tools of production, creating new channels of promotion and distribution and exposing local firms to global competition? (2)

3) The result?

Answer 1

1) e-commerce giants such as Amazon, which offer massive selections, low prices and free international shipping, threaten the survival of smaller retail chains and independent outlets
2) the ability of online platforms such as Apple’s iTunes store, Netflix and Spotify to instantaneously stream digitised cultural content such as movies, makes shopping for and consuming this content increasingly ‘on-demand’ and ‘placeless’
3) Growing perception that patronising bricks and mortar retail shops is more expensive and time-consuming than shopping online

Question 2

Literature suggesting that physical retailers can remain competitive etc is missing a few things (3):

Answer 2

1) It doesn’t say much about exactly how such strategies can be operationalized in specific locations and retail segments
2) the evolving relationship between physical and virtual spaces of distribution and curation
3) how the preferences and practices of consumers are changing in the digital age

Question 3

Music & digital revolution case study

• However, despite the apparent obsolescence of physical formats and retail spaces, the demand for ___ is increasing and some independent record shops …

Answer 3

Since late 1990s - legal and illegal downloading, music streaming services like spotify and competition from entertainment alternatives have reduced the value of recorded music and put literally thousands of record shops in Europe and North America out of business

vinyl records

not only remain open but attractive spaces of consumption and vital anchors of local neighbourhood scenes

Question 4

3 ways in which independent record shops create value:

Answer 4

1) Offering in-store experiences
2) By offering curation in the form of personalized recommendations
3) By tapping into global markets

Question 5

Why study Stockholm?

Answer 5

1) Sweden is a well-established player in the global music market
2) Swedish consumers have been early adopters of digital practices such as the illegally downloading music

Question 6

When did Spotify start in Sweden

Answer 6

2008

Question 7

1) Percentage of digital music sales in Sweden?

2) Result?

Answer 7

1) Relatively high - 79% as of 2013
2) This has arguably put more competitive pressure on physical formats and retailers, such as independent record shops, than in other markets in Europe and North America.

Question 8

Until ___ recorded music was only available in physical formats like CDs and consumers were forced to visit independent or chain-owned record shops

• Those were the ___ because…
• Early 2000 =

Answer 8

the late 1990’s

• ‘happy days’ because demand was strong and there was no need to be innovative or strategic to make sales.
• Introduction of digital formats like MP3s, file sharing
  networks such as Napster, and the widespread practice of illegally downloading copyrighted music files constituted a structural shock to the music industry which hit music retailers particularly hard

Question 9

Early 2000, Sweden example

Answer 9

700 music retailers closed between 2000 and 2010 and similar declines were seen across Europe and North America.

Question 10

By mid-2000s = … and digital music was being monetised and distributed through …

Answer 10

industry was starting to recover from the so-called MP3-Crisis and digital music was being monetised and distributed through legal channels such as Apple’s iTunes music store.

Question 11

Scholars are still fixed on the impact of illegal downloading BUT Brain thinks we need to pay more attention to the impact of

Answer 11

legal music streaming as Jack does in his research

Question 12

Downloading and Spotify quote

Answer 12

“Downloading was difficult for a lot of people but Spotify killed us!…Because they told consumers that they could get all the music in the world, for the same price as a one CD”

Question 13

2 other developments important to mention (2) :

E.g. of record shops

Answer 13

1) Digital tech have not only created new ways of marketing and distributing music but they have also facilitated the rise of independent music production which has made the marketplace for music increasingly global, saturated and competitive.
2) Consumers have been empowered by unprecedented choice but on the other, negotiating the marketplace, to discover interesting and relevant content, has become increasingly difficult and the demand for personalised recommendations is increasing
- Thus although record shops have lots their monopoly on music distribution they remain vital spaces and sources of music-related information, advice and curation

Question 14

1) Increasing ubiquity of digital music has also been accompanied by an apparent resurgence of ______
2) Status in US

Answer 14

1) vinyl records
2) Between 2006 and 2013, for example, vinyl sales in the U.S. increased by 599% with two-thirds being purchased at independent record shops.

Question 15

Counter trend is being drive by (3)

Answer 15

1) the disposable nature of MP3’s
2) the demand for artwork, superior sound quality
3) the experience of finding, opening, feeling, looking at, listening to and displaying vinyl records.

Question 16

In addition to older consumers trying to resurrect nostalgic experiences of record collecting, who else is buying vinyl instead of or in conjunction with digital formats

Quote:

Answer 16

• young people - in their teens and early 20’s

Quote: “ I would say two years ago we didn’t have that many 20-year- olds in the store, but now we have loads of them. The hipsters are coming in!”

Question 17

Strategies that indie shops are using to create value and engage consumers:

Answer 17

1) Shops offering experiences

2) Relates to curation

Question 18

‘Offering experiences’ is the process of ___

Answer 18

adaptation

Question 19

Hendricks observation to visiting record shops and consuming records

Answer 19

Highlights that there is a ritual and tactile dimension to visiting record shops and consuming records as physical objects - so the experience of walking into a store, picking up a record, touching it, going home and listening to it is valuable to consumers and something that pressing a button on your phone can’t replicate.

Question 20

Record Store day

1) Date
2) Purpose
3) Interestingly whereas music is often given away for free online, on record store day..

Answer 20

1) Saturday April 16th
2) Christmas for music lovers where indie record shops around the world host live shows which spill into the streets, sell limited edition releases only on that day and generally celebrate the idea of supporting local physical shops and formats
3) people are willing to queue up for 7 hours to get in spend hundreds of pounds on exclusive goods and experiences.

Question 21

Contribution of ‘regulars’

Answer 21

Really keep the shops in business –> in some shops regulars represent well over 50% of the clientele

Question 22

1) Shops not only serve as a place to buy music but as…

2) In some cases the micro- geography of the shop has evolved to include

Answer 22

1) …important social spaces to meet people, hang out, share knowledge and escape from work or daily life.
2) cafes and seating at the expense of merchandise.

Question 23

Quote about regulars in the store

Answer 23

“When the regulars show up we put the coffee on”

• can compare to Costa experience

Question 24

YET despite the importance of regulars, many shop owners said they can…

Answer 24

…create problems by intimidating and or scaring off new customers

Question 25

1) Also a general assumption that record shops are…

2) Quote:

Answer 25

1) Snobbish spaces that exclude outsiders or people who are not music experts
2) “I think people have a perception - a wrong perception that when they walk in they are automatically being judged”

Question 26

2nd strategy relates to curation:

Answer 26

Whereas chain retailers typically sell what the major record labels tell them to, independent shops act as curators by selecting and promoting specific content and helping consumers to navigate the marketplace by offering information and recommendations

Question 27

Although curation appears omni-present, the relative attractiveness and value of curation hinges on its (2)

Answer 27

qualities and effectiveness

Question 28

Brian’s research suggests that independent record shops can offer consumers a form of curation:

Answer 28

face-to-face interactions that yield personalised recommendations from trusted curators with high levels of cultural capital - that is not only highly valuable but difficult to replicate electronically or in virtual spaces

Question 29

1) So within the context of local record shops; who are the curators?
2) Why listen to them?

Answer 29

1) Research suggests that most of the people who work at record shops are not mere retail workers but also musicians, DJs, collectors and hardcore fans
2) Through these activities, they have developed expert knowledge and the ability to interpret, translate and match consumer tastes with specific products.

Question 30

Quote about why to listen to the curators of the record shop

Answer 30

“This is definitely a skill that I’ve acquired through being a DJ for 27 years and owning my own record store for 10 years. I don’t think the average person can do it as well or as quickly as I can”

Question 31

Curators do a variety of things to maintain and enhance this knowledge (because the flow of new music is never ending) including:..

and main thing ofc is to

Answer 31

reading music magazines, checking websites, going to concerts, traveling abroad to attend music fairs and soliciting information and opinions from customers

SPEND HOURS LISTENING TO MUSIC

Question 32

how do the curators interact with customers and impart that knowledge?

1) In physical spaces:

Answer 32

1) Main activity is face-to-face observation and interaction between curators and customers
- respondents explained that customers often come in and ask for 3 or 4 new albums to try and that they make these recommendations based on their own tastes and by asking questions about the music they like or have recently purchased

Question 33

Interacting with customers is like being ‘DJ’ analogy

Answer 33

“You are trying to figure out what that person will like and trying to match their taste with the different options. But I don’t always just recommend things that fit exactly with what they tell me, I take recommendations from both sides as well, because I want to expose them to new things”

Question 34

With stores, trust is important because …

Answer 34

only effective recommendations will entice the customer to come back to the store

Question 35

Beyond face-to-face interactions, the curators also make recommendations by…

Answer 35

… writing blurbs, lists and reviews that may be posted online or in the store

• Also select the music that is layed and sold in the store and how the items are organized and displayed

Question 36

Curators don’t just recommend music, they also help to…

Answer 36

interpret information and obtain music

Question 37

Unlike Amazon or iTunes that practice a ‘take it or leave it’ policy, curators in local shops can…

Answer 37

… make special orders for rare or limited products

Question 38

How does a record store operate as a filter?

Answer 38

although the individual is important for curation even without direct interaction, by offering a limited supply and facilitating physical browsing, the store can serve as an important filter

Question 39

Quote about importance of a store as a filter

Answer 39

“There are a lot of people who come in here who are regulars, but regulars to the store, they don’t come here to talk to me”

Question 40

To increase their attractiveness and value, many independent record shops not only curate music but …

Answer 40

a range of related products including scene-appropriate clothing and audio equipment such as turntables and headphones

Question 41

Connecting to the concept of ‘exclusivity’, some respondents explained that they stock clothes that are.. (2)

Answer 41

unique and difficult to find

Question 42

Quote about clothes etc getting too commercial

Answer 42

“When clothes or something gets too commercial I won’t sell it anymore…because I know the customers don’t want anymore.. it has something to do with the values that my customers have, they don’t want what everyone else has”

Question 43

product diversification was viewed as crucial to (2) whilst also ….

Answer 43

spreading risk and weathering market volatility whilst also einforcing their position as experts and tastemakers

Question 44

Commonly assumed that record stores are (2)

3) but actually a complimentary relationship between

Answer 44

1) Hanging on to an outdated model of physical distribution
2) They are at war with online sources of music and curation
3) physical and virtual spaces

Question 45

Indeed, while it is true that online distribution makes it more difficult for local record stores to sell to local consumers, the flip side is that…

Answer 45

… the stores can open up their own online channels of promotion and distribution and tap into a truly global consumer market

Question 46

So many stores sell online and one store even works with Spotify

1) How

Answer 46

1) They created an app and offer recommendations and playlists to help online listeners sort through the massive collection of music on Spotify

Question 47

“Since we couldn’t break Spotify we decided to join them and work with them”

Our thinking is that… (2)

Answer 47

1) If people like our recommendations they may want to also own the music in physical formats
2) If they are local they can come to our store and if they are in another part of the world they can order from our online shop and have it delivered

Question 48

As geographers we are not only interested in the examining the intersections between physical and virtual spaces and the micro-geographies within shops but also the …

Answer 48

dynamics of neighbourhoods or scene in which they operate

Question 49

2 clusters in Stockholm

1) St Erisksplan

2) Sodermalm
- result

Answer 49

1) older cluster of St. Eriksplan –> shops tend to sell the same range of products, they compete with each other directly and have not been developing or adopting strategies to create value and enhance their competitiveness
2) Newer Sodermalm –> things are very different: instead of competing directly we found that each store had developed a unique niche with some shops selling a broad range of genres and formats and others only selling vinyl or used vinyl in specific genres such as jazz or electronic
- Result: shops help to cross-promote each other which increases sales for everyone in the cluster

St Eriksplan = boring whilst Sodermalm = thriving heart of the city’s hipster quarter

Question 50

As music-related curation becomes increasingly important for consumers it is also clear that despite the influx of new actors and channels, independent record shops remain….

Answer 50

vital spaces and sources of information, advice and taste-making. And shops that cultivate personal and trusting relationships can compete in terms of curation with less effectiveness algorithms