Indie retailers got the difficult memo years ago: if they wanted to survive, they had to diversify beyond music. Way beyond. Newbury Comics is a great example, but record stores across-the-board now sell dozens of 'lifestyle' categories that have nothing to do with the good old recording.
And, this is becoming a bigger and bigger chunk of the business. In fact, it is quietly approaching one-third of broader sales, withlifestyle representing the higher-growth category. “Music is selling way under list and the markup on lifestyle is huge," StreetPulse CEO John Weston told Digital Music News this afternoon. “From what I can see, lifestyle product could be as high as 30 percent in some stores and still growing."
StreetPulse tracks indie retails sales across the US, including vinyl sales.
So, lifestyle stuff like t-shirts? Not really. According to stats shared by indie tracker StreetPulse with Digital Music News, apparel accounts for less than 5 percent of broader lifestyle sales. And, it's totally eclipsed by things like toys and electronics like headphones, which collective account for nearly half of lifestyle sales. And, incense...
Here's a year-to-date breakdown of various lifestyle categories.
And, this is becoming a bigger and bigger chunk of the business. In fact, it is quietly approaching one-third of broader sales, withlifestyle representing the higher-growth category. “Music is selling way under list and the markup on lifestyle is huge," StreetPulse CEO John Weston told Digital Music News this afternoon. “From what I can see, lifestyle product could be as high as 30 percent in some stores and still growing."
StreetPulse tracks indie retails sales across the US, including vinyl sales.
So, lifestyle stuff like t-shirts? Not really. According to stats shared by indie tracker StreetPulse with Digital Music News, apparel accounts for less than 5 percent of broader lifestyle sales. And, it's totally eclipsed by things like toys and electronics like headphones, which collective account for nearly half of lifestyle sales. And, incense...
Here's a year-to-date breakdown of various lifestyle categories.
