BRATTLEBORO-Are you searching for a copy of an old Elton John album, some DVDs of The Sopranos, or perhaps something by someone more contemporary, like Taylor Swift?
The best place to find both new and old vinyl, compact discs, DVDs, and even cassette tapes is Turn It Up! at 85 Main St. in Brattleboro. The store has been part of downtown since 2003 and is now entering a new chapter, as longtime manager Carson Arnold officially became the store's owner earlier this week.
Chandra Hancock and Patrick Pezzati opened the first Turn it Up! store in Northampton, Massachusetts, in 1995, with the focus on bargain-priced music and, later, DVDs.
On Nov. 24, 30 years later to the day, they sold the Northampton store, along with their other stores in Montague and Brattleboro.
The time was right for Pezzati and Hancock to step back.
"Chandra, my wife and business partner, was hit by a car three years ago," explained Pezzati. "She's OK, though still struggling with pain. But we realized that we have things we want to do outside of the business while we're physically able to."
The prospect of someone experienced like Arnold taking over the business made the decision easier.
"He's been part of the Turn It Up! family since he was buying music as a 10-year-old when we first opened," said Pezzati. "He was hired in Brattleboro about a year after we opened there. He's 40 now, and it's a logical next step for him."
With years of experience managing the Keene store before it closed in 2018, and the Brattleboro store for a decade, Arnold continues to approach the job with enthusiasm, enjoying working with the customers and helping them find the recording or movie they are looking for.
"Customer loyalty is the reason the stores have endured for so long," said Arnold. "The company has been open for 30 years, and we still have many of those same people coming in and shopping today."
In addition, he credits employees past and present, who have been committed to keeping physical media relevant every day and bringing their creativity and enthusiasm into the stores.
"Without both of those parties we might not be here today - and I am grateful for all of them," he said.
Being based in a community that values music and the arts has also proven beneficial.
Challenges, surprises, and … vinyl?
Arnold has faced plenty of challenges to navigate over the years. Soon after he started the job, the music industry underwent massive changes with the advent of streaming services, leading to the closure of many independent record stores and major chains like Tower Records and Virgin Megastore.
Sales of new CDs at Turn It Up! were also starting to wane, so they adapted by beefing up their DVD and used CD collections, keeping prices low, and adding other music-related merchandise. It was an approach that worked.
But nobody could have predicted what happened next: the resurrection of interest in vinyl records, which were essentially phased out when the CD explosion occurred in the '80s.
"That market was always there but more discreet," Arnold said. "But then, all of a sudden, in 2011, you started to see more young people buy Neil Young and Janis Joplin LPs, and the rest is history."
The interest in vinyl continues, as does a recent uptick in CD sales.
Consumers, especially younger ones, seem to appreciate owning an actual physical product.
"A lot of customers who are getting into vinyl are also then getting into CDs soon after," said Arnold.
"We find people are balancing their listening habits more - there is the music they feel that they should stream, and then there's the music they want to own 'forever' and have on their shelf," Arnold said.
The store carries a wide selection of new and used vinyl and continues to sell used CDs at prices that have hardly changed since 1995.
Turn It Up! remains open seven days a week, on weekdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturdays, they stay open until 6 p.m. And they are open on Sundays at noon. The hours will increase over the holidays.
Pezzati has agreed to serve as a consultant for the next five years and will even cover some shifts in the Brattleboro store.
The most significant change that Arnold plans to implement in the store can be summed up in one word: more!
Customers can expect to see more and newer inventory as he rotates products among stores. He also plans to increase the number of new CDs and vinyl and to offer more memorabilia in the shop, including posters, lunch boxes, T-shirts, and books. He additionally promises some "cool surprises."
"I also hope to continue to have some in-store performances. We just had a few electronic sets in the store for the downtown Circuits In The Woods event, and that was a blast," Arnold said.
However, Arnold is not planning on changing things up just for the sake of change.
"I'm not interested in re-doing things that are already working quite well," he said. "Patrick and Chandra built an amazing company, and I plan to honor that going forward."
This News item by Sheryl Hunter was written for The Commons.