Lease signs at Zulu Records signal changes

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      “For Lease” signs have appeared in the windows of West 4th Avenue record store Zulu, but that doesn’t mean the venerable outlet is on its way out of the neighbourhood, according to owner Grant McDonagh.

      The shop opened 34 years ago and moved to its current digs at 1972 West 4th Avenue in 1999. It expanded to occupy two storefronts not long afterward, and has more recently become a driving force behind the massive annual Khatsahlano Street Party.

      McDonagh says the plan is simply to reduce the business’s footprint to one of the two storefronts (precisely which one will be announced this fall). The shift is partly to do with high property taxes on his present square footage, he says, and partly because of long-developing changes in music retail.

      “It just makes it easier for us,” McDonagh said to the Straight by phone, referring to the plan. “The only reason we expanded in the first place was because there was a demand. There was X amount of customers who wanted more CDs. And in my mind I kind of thought, ‘Wow, wouldn’t it be great if you could just convert most of it [the double-storefront space] to all-vinyl?’ And it just doesn’t work….There’s such a large percentage of people that don’t come to us or Red Cat, Neptoon, Audiopile—they just don’t buy music at record stores. But thankfully there’s enough, we think, to keep us going in one of the buildings.”

      This will come as good news to those who’ve long viewed Zulu as a kind of community centre for music fans, a place not only to track down an elusive album but also to catch live bands and buy concert tickets (not to mention browsing the racks of rare and imported movies run by Videomatica, which joined forces with Zulu in 2011, and which McDonagh is “optimistic” about keeping as a partner).

      McDonagh says he’s envisioning the new space as something more focused and carefully curated—something, in fact, closer in spirit to Zulu’s original location just a block east along 4th.

      “In this day and age, it’s just a different market, but also the demographics have changed,” he noted. “We used to be right near the comic shop in years back, and the Soft Rock Café—that’s going way back. In some ways the area has changed, so we’re grateful to still be here.”

      Comments

      9 Comments

      Richard S.

      Sep 3, 2015 at 1:37pm

      Phew! Scared me for a minute.

      The day the music died

      Sep 3, 2015 at 1:58pm

      Zounds! Me too!

      hey!

      Sep 4, 2015 at 12:11am

      Put Against the Glass on disc...please

      Dee Chardain

      Sep 4, 2015 at 10:29am

      Live long & prosper Grant ... we love ya

      Videomatica

      Sep 4, 2015 at 12:53pm

      Hey, don't forget about Videomatica. We'll still be around too, inside Zulu.

      Very sad

      Sep 4, 2015 at 3:01pm

      Considering the proliferation and bustling business of record stores in Vancouver in the last couple years, Zulu should be doing just fine, if not thriving. The problem is in the stock and just not keeping up with what sells these days. They never have anything contemporary, relevant or interesting to those of us that actually buy music these days.

      Xander Davis

      Sep 4, 2015 at 5:34pm

      "new" record stores on East Hastings near Nanaimo.

      Horses, 2447 E Hastings

      Hit and Misses, 2629 E Hastings Street

      And of course, Carson's Books and records at new location away from Dunbar, at 4340 Main Street.

      And a new one at 8 West Pender at Carrall.

      RE: Very Sad

      Sep 5, 2015 at 7:18am

      Agreed. It's an ocean of vinyl in there but way too much junk.
      Places like Red Cat are a fraction of the size loaded with gems.
      Zulu needs an overhaul

      Anonymous

      Sep 5, 2015 at 9:48am

      Very Sad says:
      The problem is in the stock and just not keeping up with what sells these days.
      .................................................................................................................
      Perhaps Zulu can't take robot edm, gangster rap or Miley Stylus ... perhaps he would rather open a sausage factory.