18 MusicWeek 20.04.12 SECTORFOCUS VINYL
“I’m hoping vinyl can maintain its status as the quality ingredient in a complementary range of ways to engage with recorded music” GERARD SAINT, BIG ACTIVE
that the format is still being produced at all as further testament to the amount of love and loyalty that it musters in those that work with it. “There are people out there that really believe
that vinyl has a massive future so it’s a good sign but it’s still a struggle,” he says. Indeed, perhaps the biggest consensus between
players across the vinyl market surrounds the format’s future. “I remember back when I worked in labels in the
“Indie labels are really trying to be creative about
how they release music and they really care about it,” she says, “and there’s a kind of relationship with indie stores that sees the two working together to keep the vinyl format buoyant.” David de la Bruyere, MD of Disc Solutions,
which specialises in high quality vinyl pressing and packaging, is similarly keen to pay tribute to indie contributions when it comes to making sure consumers still have access to vinyl products, even if that indie drive is facing tough times. “As with any form of retail outlet, the High
Street model is encumbered with high, even crippling overheads, fortunately there are excellent independent distributors and direct wholesalers that placate the supply and demand for vinyl by the public,” he says. “It’s a real shame every time a store closes. I miss
those Saturdays where you’d meet your mates and check the latest tunes.” A steep decline in vinyl outlets isn’t the only
challenge facing vinyl in 2012, however. Key Production’s Neil Gibbons adds: “The other problem is that the cost of vinyl at retail is false, it needs to be more expensive. “Retailers don’t want to sell it at a higher price,
which impacts on dealer price, which in turn impacts on labels, and then furthermore on the manufacturers. “The impact that goes into making a piece of
vinyl rather than a CD is far greater and the energy costs are massive because it’s all done on gas and steam,” he explains. In fact, the challenges thrown up by vinyl
manufacture can be traced right back to its core. While digital add-ons and creative thinking might be keeping final products fresh, the initial factory process is decidedly geriatric. Gibbons continues: “One of the main challenges
is getting a vinyl plant that stays in business, they’re few and far between. “There are a handful in the UK and around
Europe, but nobody makes the machinery anymore so you have to find it and bring people who know what they’re doing out of retirement to recondition the parts. It’s a fine art.” David de la Bruyere agrees. “The actual supply
line is complicated,” he explains. “Mastering houses and pressing plants have to maintain obsolete machinery. Parts come from one or two suppliers, as do the raw materials. One break in the supply chain could mean demand outstrips supply.” As troublesome as the archaic production line may be for vinyl, however, Gibbons sees the fact
BELOW ‘As labels see that people want vinyl, I think more and more products will be released on the format...’ Tony Boothroyd, owner of
Huddersfield’s Vinyl Tap
early Nineties, people called vinyl a dying format,” says Sarah Bolshi. “Twenty years later, it’s still here and I think that while CDs will probably fade out, vinyl will survive. “People love it and younger vinyl collectors
seem to be buying into it so I’m still confident about the future. “The fact that we keep pressing Kitty Daisy &
Lewis’ vinyl album, which I think has done thousands now, is amazing,” she adds. “The David Lynch standard vinyl is doing well too. “There are certain lines that we keep repressing
and we do a standard run for everything else anyway, which sell out as well. There are definitely people who want to buy vinyl.” Tony Boothroyd owner of Vinyl Tap, a record
shop with a strong online presence and a store in Huddersfield, adds: “The vinyl sector will always be a niche market and after 26 years selling vinyl the feedback from our customers is positive. “As labels see that people want vinyl, I think
more and more products will be released on the format, which will help grow the vinyl business.” With digital dominance on the horizon, Gerard
Saint sees vinyl playing a much bigger role in future. “I’m hoping vinyl can maintain its status as the
quality ingredient in a complementary range of ways to engage with recorded music,” he says. “I’m also confident that vinyl will have totally
replaced the CD and be the only remaining physical format.” For some, the reason for vinyl to remain an
important part of the recorded music industry comes from that very same passion that turned them on to the format in the first place. “You cannot beat an analogue sound,” says Disc
Solutions’ de la Bruyere. “Buying a vinyl record is a statement about yourself.”
100m
WORLD RECORDS IFPI’S REVIVAL REPORT
Although there are plenty of voices in the UK ready to crow about vinyl’s good health, the format still makes a strong showing right across the globe. The IFPI’s Recording Industry in Numbers 2012 report, which was released in March, showed that the vinyl revival is being enjoyed all over the world, with the UK being the No.3 market for the format in terms of sales in 2011, behind the US and Germany...
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“Although digital channels are today at the centre of music companies’ operations, physical products are also a very significant element of the business and are evolving to meet changing consumer needs.
200m
GLOBAL VINYL SALES 1997-2011 (US$ MILLIONS TRADE VALUE)
150m
50m 0
97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 Source: IFPI
The physical sector is gravitating, in particular, towards deluxe products or bundles with merchandise or concert tickets. Music companies generally expect these different methods of music consumption to be complementary, and to continue evolving. The vinyl market is a great example of how some
physical products are enjoying reviving fortunes. Despite only accounting for only 1% of global recorded music revenues, vinyl sales increased by 28.8% in 2011 to total US$115m. Vinyl sales peaked in the early 1980s and
subsequently declined steadily. The format’s sales reached their lowest point in 2006 and since then have sharply grown. In many countries – such as the US, Germany, France and the Netherlands – vinyl sales are now at their highest level since 1997. The top 10 vinyl markets make up 95% of all sales of the format.”
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