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Record Store Day 2025- Insight into one of Leicester’s much loved record stores
Organised by Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA), Record Store Day (RSD) is the biggest event of the year for music lovers who appreciate all things vinyl. On 12th April 2025, over 270 record stores across the country will participate, with customers, artists, radio shows and labels gathering together to celebrate our record stores.
We speak to Carl Petty from Rockaboom in Leicester, who has been involved in RSD for 15 years. He tells us the “Early noughties were a pretty tough time for bricks and mortar stores, and the vinyl format as a whole. Record Store Day was a no-brainer really – exclusive products, limited editions, no downloads, no internet sales, everything that was great about high street shopping. From there it just very quickly grew into the unstoppable monster it has been for many years now.”.
According to a recent BBC article, vinyl sales have increased for the 16th year in a row, and in 2024, sales reached an incredible £196 million!1. Sales of physical music are growing year on year despite streaming platforms providing us with millions of songs at our fingertips. We still have the desire to own physical copies of our beloved albums – but why?
It’s no secret that music can emote feelings and even bring us to tears. But vinyl provides us with a pinch of nostalgia, like flicking through records to find your favourite album from your teen years, it allows us to have a connection to the format. Despite digital sound quality and the ability to playback being helpful, you could argue that there’s no better feeling than placing your record on a turntable and immersing yourself into the experience. Who else better to ask about the vinyl resurgence than a record store owner themselves. Carl believes that the
“tangible, collectable and all-together more complete listening ‘experience’ is in stark contrast to the streaming experience and is appealing to both young and not-so-young music lovers.”
The beauty of walking into a record store as a music lover is finding likeminded people, who also have an appreciation for music and records. Record stores allow us to experience the art of discovery by sharing our favourite records with peers and even strangers. For some music lovers, the aesthetics of vinyl album covers can lead to purchases as they offer high-quality artwork, or it’s the idea of collecting physical music, from rare to limited edition, many vinyl records have a high value, be that financially or emotionally.
Carl’s passion for music, started from a young age, soon turned into spending his hard-earned money (from three paper rounds and pot washing in restaurants) on as many vinyl records as he could. Carl would head to Selectadisc in Nottingham to browse their “wild selection” that got his “young and foolish mind wandering”. And, thanks to Carl’s father who shared his passion for music, we saw the birth of Rockaboom. Now, in the heart of Leicester, this record store, as well as the hundreds more that join together for RSD, give customers access to these records and all the feelings that come along with owning our favourite music.
Ultimately, those who purchase vinyl records are showing support for the creators. All this makes record stores invaluable to music consumption, self-discovery and of course, the creators themselves. “I consider it of the upmost importance that artists are fairly paid for their work. Carl, Rockaboom.
Record Store Day is paramount to supporting independent record stores across the country, as each year artists release exclusive and rare vinyls specifically for RSD that create a buzz around each store as people seek out their favourite albums and celebrate all things music. Carl’s most anticipated exclusives this year range from Oasis, Suede and Jesus and Mary Chain among others. As well as this, RSD UK has had iconic ambassadors over the years ranging from Elton John to Kate Bush. For 2025, Sam Fender is the official ambassador of RSD, and he wants to highlight the unique culture record stores have and how important their role is within communities.
To find exclusive records just for RSD and your store locator, you can visit the RSD website at: https://www.recordstoreday.co.uk/. To find out more about Rockaboom here in Leicester, you can find them on Facebook.
Author
Toni Hendry
Toni Hendry studied Arts at De Montfort University and gained a MSc in Business within the Creativity Industries at the Leicester Business School where she received an award for her writing. Shortly after graduating she joined PPL PRS in 2022 as a National Account Executive and has recently joined the marketing team where she can share her passion for writing, culture and music in her new role as Marketing & Content Executive.
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