Ralph's Battles Downloads with Vinyl Sales
Ralph’s Records is selling a fraction of what they sold in 2004.
Before illegal downloads were accessible, the company turned a profit of two to three times what it does today, according to Daniel Fluitt, who has worked at Ralph's for more than four years. He said declining CD prices also impact the company’s profits.
“It’s just hard for an independent record store to stay open,” Fluitt said. “Hopefully, the downloads will slow down a bit.”
Fluitt said the sound quality of downloaded music is poor compared to that of CDs and vinyl records. But sometimes younger people are not exposed to the sound quality of CDs and are therefore unaware of the distinction.
Fluitt said Ralph’s Records is unique in that it is one of the only music stores in Lubbock that pursues the sale of vinyl records, which may be why they are able to stay in business during what some say is a dangerous time for music retailers.
“Vinyl is making a big comeback,” he said.
The large size of vinyl records may be what grabs people’s attention, he said.
Perhaps as a result of the recent decrease in CD prices, Ralph’s Records has sold more CDs this year than in 2007.
Ralph's employee Pat Thompson said people still like to buy CDs and vinyl for the artwork and the physicality of ownership.
“Used CDs are still what we sell the most of everyday,” he said.
Thompson said they also sell used DVDs and video games along with music memorabilia to help keep their profits up.
Keith Murr, a senior at Texas Tech from Ft. Worth, said he prefers to buy CDs from Ralph's Records rather than downloading music to his computer.
"(Ralph's) is not a chain record store so it still has personality," he said. "And you don't really know what you're getting with downloads."
Murr said one advantage to buying a CD rather than to download a song is the opportunity to listen to each song on the album, not one song exclusively. And musicians still need the profits, he said.
Despite the illegal copying and sharing of music today, Ralph's Records said they do not expect to go out of business as a result of music piracy.
"I don't see Ralph's closing down anytime soon," said Fluitt.