Vinyl beating CDs in sales has Eastern Iowa record stores changing strategy

For the first time since 1988 a recent Recording Association report shows vinyl records are on pace to outsell CDs.

“We’ve seen this going this way for a long time,” Bobby Larson, owner of Record Collector in Iowa City, said.

From the Beatles to Miles Davis, Larson’s life revolves around vinyl sales. He stopped selling new CDs at his store in the last few years.

“We’ve always sold vinyl since 1982,” Larson said. “For a long time, we relied on CDs sales, but in the last decade that changed.”

Even though the sea change in sales is underway, physical purchases only make up 9% of sales. Streaming websites make up 80% of sales. For some, though, having an actual object to hold is irreplaceable.

“Part of it is just having the larger artwork,” said Larson. “Or just being able to watch it spin around instead of pressing a button. There is something just a little more magical about records instead of pressing a button on your phone.”