Retail

Music Stores

Formally established in 2000, though it had been operating for a number of years prior, this is an award winning mail order and e-commerce business providing vinyl, CD’s, merchandise and equipment to the Dance music market. Anyone into Drum n Bass, UK Hardcore, Old Skool, Bouncy House, Trance, House, Dub Step and Rave Breaks to mention just a few genres in which this business specializes, will have this website amongst their ‘Favourites’. Built around the current Owner’s expertise as a very well established DJ within the industry this business supplies Vinyl record singles and albums, CD packs – all the freshest promos, all the brand new releases together with a massive selection of back catalogue are all available – together with Slipmats, Clothing and other merchandise, all of which have recently been added to by the introduction of Rave Event tickets. Pressing and distribution of material is also a relatively new addition to the business with the company working with a number of Labels undertaking the production of certain products including vinyl and clothing. This really is a one stop shop for Dance music enthusiasts – with everything under one roof and available for next day delivery. The vast majority of transactions are from private individuals although this business has a growing base of retail customers keen to access the wide range of music and merchandise this business always has available. A member of the MCPS (Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society) with a full MCPS Music license, the vast majority of business done by this company is via the web with all of its sites designed specifically to suit the requirements of the business. The cornerstone to its success has been customer service which has been at the forefront of its operations since Day One. Customers, many of which are very loyal, can rely on this business for excellent service, so much so that this business has regularly been awarded ‘Record Shop/Website of the Year’ at the most relevant Awards ceremony for the genres in which it specialises. A manufacturer of stock itself, this business maintains very close links with artists and their labels, occasionally receiving stock direct and has always worked hard to develop an equally outstanding, trusting and reliable reputation with its suppliers. The appeal of Dance music is growing apace. Well established within its specialist genres and covering all bases including vinyl, CD’s, merchandise and tickets this business more than any is ideally positioned to take maximum advantage of this growth. With turnover consistently exceeding £420,000 in recent years, a performance certain to be repeated in the current financial year this business represents an excellent opportunity for a current e-commerce based music business to acquire a very well known player within this sector or alternatively a private investor with an interest in the music/retail industry to acquire a very well managed music business and a very firm foothold within the sector. Key strengths: This is a business established by a Dance music enthusiast for Dance music enthusiasts. As a result customers are very much seen as the lifeline of the business and are treated by the Owner and the employees within the business as they themselves would like to be treated. Customers of this business know they will get a good service at a very good price – with all goods available under one roof. Staff are highly experienced, expert and very knowledgeable. The business has a vast selection of products, old and new from which customers can select. The business’s award winning website which was built to specification is user friendly and includes many unique features including automatically alerting suppliers of minimum stock. Customers are advised when a requested out of stock item is put back on the system. An online server facility ensures stock and information is updated to the website in real time. Payment facilities include all major credit and debit cards plus Paypal with all customer information details kept safe and transactions completed securely and speedily. Customer service is no less impressive with quick deliveries to any country in the world using Royal Mail, Fed Ex, DHL, Streetwise and Parceline with most orders despatched same day. Processes are in place to enable any problems are dealt with quickly and efficiently involving the minimum management time. Key opportunities: With Dance music becoming ever more popular, there is an outstanding opportunity to build on the existing business levels and customer base of this company. With a strong demand for this business's products, a new owner contributing fresh ideas, enthusiasm and motivation will have every advantage of building on an excellent platform. Until recently this business concentrated its efforts on a small number of genres such as UK Hardcore, Drum n Bass and Bouncy House. The addition of other genres, its Distribution activities as well as the introduction of ticket sales are recent developments which have yet to fully impact on the overall performance of the business. With excellent growth prospects for all these areas and the possibility of moving the business into music downloads, this business has barely scratched the surface. The business has also recently launched a very successful ‘White label’ initiative offering a similarly oriented partner website a shopping facility similar to this business’s website but carrying the full branding of the Partner. Orders placed go straight through to this business for fulfilment with a commission paid per order to the Partner. Efforts to roll this out with additional partners could significantly impact on the turnover and profitability of this business with very little additional investment required. Marketing and advertising: Originally established as a Mail order business this company was originally marketed via full colour catalogues. As the company and the marketplace has developed all information is now loaded on to the website which performs very well within all major search engines for all appropriate search terms receiving over 11 million hits each month from between 70,000 to 80,000 unique users. The business also undertakes e-mailings to an opt-in list totaling over 35,000 e-mail addresses. For mail order customers the business has a very memorable and easily recognizable telephone number. Having advertised in virtually every relevant publication at some stage since the business was established the company has refined its print advertising to three of the major titles, advertising on a monthly basis and enjoying very good rates without being tied in to any minimum period. The business also undertakes highly targeted leafleting outside events that cater for the genres in which this business specializes. By far the most effective form of marketing for this business however is the strong word of mouth recommendation the business benefits from, testimony to its excellent reputation within the sector – and an extremely useful marketing asset within the Dance music scene.

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