"It becomes a real social hub"

Record Store Day (RSD) is not without its critics - myself included - but it seems that for some independent shops, such as Jumbo and Crash in Leeds, it remains a worthwhile exercise.

To mark this year's event, the Guardian dispatched Dave Simpson to Jumbo, the vinyl paradise of his youth, to report back on the experience of working behind the counter. His conclusions about what makes a record shop special are hardly surprising, but worth underlining anyway: a welcoming and generous attitude (rather than snobbish disdain) and an emphasis on the personal touch and connection (in marked contrast to the anonymous recommendations of Spotify's algorithms).

Simpson notes that the number of record shops in the UK currently stands at a relatively healthy 426; in 2012, that figure had dipped below 300. No doubt the vinyl boom is a prime factor behind the resurgence.

But selling music is not a lucrative business, and at the heart of the article sits a comment from Jumbo's owner Nick Fraser that gives pause for thought and indeed concern: "There's two reasons why someone might want a record shop in 2023. Some might have seen the queues for RSD and think: 'I can have a piece of that.' But a lot of us are people with a bit of money at the end of their careers who do it because it's a passion." There's ample evidence in the article of Fraser's passion, but it's troubling that he also needed cash accrued from a corporate career in IT to be able to bankroll his pipedream. As in so many areas of the music industry, it seems that private/independent means may be a prerequisite to entry.