Ape! - record retailers fight back

I decided long ago that bricks and mortar record retailers were finished. Free downloads and online CD sales have killed off virtually every shop I used to patronise. My own CD consumption has held up, but increasingly I buy online.

So imagine my surprise at the weekend when I was lured into a tiny CD shop in Brighton town centre by a sign outside promising “CDs for £5”. They certainly know how to attract passing cheapskates, I thought, let’s give ‘em a chance… It’s a while since I’ve had the pleasure of a good browse…

Inside Ape! (lovely name, that), I could hardly believe the range of modern popular musics stocked – indie to electronica, rock to dance – or the depth and choice of catalogue they’d achieved in such a small retail space. A helpful, knowledgeable lad at the till completed a compelling retail offer.

Intending to stock up on Bright Eyes albums, following the tumultuous Conor Oberst gig last week, I found myself buying a handful of CDs.

If I lived in Brighton, I’d be visiting Ape! - and flashing the plastic - far too often for my own good. Record retailers this good deserve to succeed in the face of online competition.

Ape! also supply online:

www.awasteofpixels.com/apeshop/index.php



Gerry Smith