UK | Karen Emanuel predicts ‘steady growth’ for vinyl in 2026: Key Production Group founder Karen Emanuel has projected “steady growth” for vinyl in 2026 and saluted Taylor Swift’s impact on the physical music market. The overall vinyl market was up 10.7% year-on-year in Q3 at 1,498,693 units, according to data from the BPI, while sales for the year to date are up 7.4% at 4,733,937. …It was reported earlier this year that Key Production had seen a 50% surge in vinyl orders in 2025, and Emanuel told Music Week she expected the format’s upward trajectory to continue next year. “I think there’s going to be small, steady growth,” she said. “I think the vinyl market falsely skyrocketed during and after Covid, so now we’re just readjusting. Would I be worried if it didn’t? I wouldn’t be worried, because one year doesn’t tell the whole story. But everything to me is pointing towards steady growth.”
Phoenix, AZ | Phoenix record store’s new owner wants to build a ‘vinyl village.’ Here’s what that means: Josh ‘Breezy’ Briese puts a new spin on a storied midtown spot. Since Josh Briese took ownership of the long-running shop Tracks in Wax, the central Phoenix record store has gotten brighter. Literally. No shade to any of the vinyl haven’s previous owners. Those who own businesses have the freedom to do as they please. What Briese wanted was to remove the paper and decor that obscured the view of and from the store’s interior and use the ubiquitous Arizona sunlight as a beacon to draw people in. Doing so added a lightness to the place’s inner atmosphere. The thoughtful new airy feel, a deep clean and a roomy arrangement of the massive amount of records combine to make it feel like a new place.
Nashville, TN | Iconic Ernest Tubb Record Shop Reopening In Nashville As Four-Story Venue, Featuring A Honky-Tonk, Performance Space, And Record Store. Three years after closing, the legendary Ernest Tubb Record Shop in Nashville is set to reopen with a revitalized four-story space that honors the late country icon’s legacy. The newly restored venue preserved original elements from the iconic space like the exposed brick and various memorabilia, including letters from Johnny Cash and artifacts from Tubb’s celebrated career. Owned by Tusk Brothers Entertainment co-founders Jamie and Bryan Kenney—who partnered with Tubb’s grandson Dale Tubb to oversee the restoration—the space now features a honky-tonk with two stages (including the original Midnite Jamboree stage), a record shop, private event spaces, and a rooftop bar, aiming to revive the spirit of community, live music, and artist camaraderie that made the shop a historic country music hub since 1947.
Newtown, UK | Mike Breeze brings back Rainbow Records in Newtown: A well-known record and CD seller who opened his Newtown shop 40 years ago has come out of retirement during the run-up to Christmas. Rainbow Records’ Mike Breeze is a familiar face to many music lovers across Mid Wales and Shropshire having run his successful business over five decades, which included promoting bands all over the country and playing records on BBC Shropshire. He opened his first record shop in Shrewsbury in 1974 before moving to Oswestry. But it was in 1985 when Mike opened Rainbow Records in Park Street, Newtown, where he traded successfully for more than 25 years. Mike told the County Times: “I loved my time in Newtown, where I have made many good friends and super customers.” After 20 further years trading on market stalls in Welshpool, Llandrindod Wells and Llanidloes, Mike has returned to his roots and is trading again in Newtown.
Broadwindsor, UK | Broadwindsor Record Vault ‘vinyl revival’ night for B sharp: The owner of the ‘most rural record shop in the UK’ has raised more than £500 for young musicians with his first big event. Ian Picken has been a lifelong lover of records since he worked in a shop at 14. He previously ran an event company in wellbeing and education but decided to take a gamble and open his very own record store at Redlands Yard, Broadwindsor last year, after his wife convinced him to follow his dream. The now 58-year-old has been overwhelmed with the support his business venture has had. The tucked away Record Vault has also been dubbed ‘the most rural record shop in the UK’ by record shop consultant and author Graham Jones, who has visited almost every vinyl store in the UK. Mr Picken decided he wanted to give back to the community and held a ‘vinyl revival’ evening at Comrades Hall in the village with money going towards B Sharp.
Salt Lake, UT | Holiday shopping: 12 gift ideas from 12 Washington County shop owners: From Christmas LEGO sets to home gifts, from chocolates to vinyl, these presents are sure to impress. …Rock House Records: Rock House Records is a family-run business born out of a love of collecting vinyl. One of the owners, Ethan Osness, said a camping trip in 2020 prompted the idea of opening a record store. Osness’ parents used to own a punk music-oriented store in St. George before Osness, 26, and his brother were born. After having children and another business, they shut down the store but Osness’ father would buy and sell vinyl records online. “We had a garage full of used records,” Osness explained. “[We] just had the idea of ‘Why don’t we open a record store?’ Because there’s not really anything like that here.” The store has grown from one row of records to several thousands of records.
Santa Barbara, CA | Vast collection of historic American music released via UC Santa Barbara Library partnership with Dust-to-Digital Foundation: Thousands of songs representing some of the rarest and most uniquely American music borne from the Jazz Age and the Great Depression would have likely been lost to landfills and faded from memory. Fans and historians have long credited obsessive record collectors for preserving much of that music, and today they can thank a new partnership between UC Santa Barbara and the nonprofit Dust-to-Digital Foundation for making it available to the public for free. UCSB Library’s Special Research Collections has been uploading music from the foundation’s trove of approximately 50,000 songs to the university’s Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) database. So far, more than 5,000 songs from Dust-to-Digital have been added to DAHR, said David Seubert, curator of the library’s performing arts collection.
Shreveport, LA | Shreveport estate sale featuring original Elvis Presley photos at Stan’s Record Shop in 1957: Are you an Elvis Presley fan? If so, you don’t want to miss this Shreveport estate sale. Trusted Estate Sales is hosting the estate of Barbara Hester, former owner of Lee’s on Kings Highway. The estate features Hester’s Elvis Presley photos from the private collection of Stan Lewis who owned a Shreveport record shop. The black and white photos were taken when Elvis Presley visited the shop in 1957. There is also a portrait signed by Elvis. The Elvis items are available for purchase through a bidding process. There is no minimum bid. According to Co-owner Anna Stiles, bids will be collected throughout the sale and opened on Saturday night.
Alexander City, AL | Vinyl’s working to build neighborhood: Downtown Alexander City was hopping Saturday with another fall festival. Vinyl’s Neighborhood Lounge hosted the four-hour event. Along with more than a dozen vendors, there was a blowup slide for the young folks, and live music from a few local talents. Vinyl’s also had their doors open during the event, allowing shoppers to sip and shop. Vinyl’s co-owner Crayton Walton was happy with the business’s first hosted event. “It went great,” he said. “The vendors said they had a good turnout.” Walton said having local events for residents was important. “The whole goal is to build our neighborhood back,” he said. “We need to have events not for people on the lake, but actual locals that live here.”
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