Here we are, you have your vinyl and are thinking about how much you can sell it for in the future.
Well, you stumbled upon the right post.
Let’s face it, identifying good financial opportunities is a skill that everyone should have. It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in.
In this post I’m going to discuss whether vinyl will have some future value because this is a question I frequently come across in most forums.
With that said, let’s get right into this post so you know whether vinyl is worth your time and energy.
So, Will vinyl be worth anything in the future?
Almost all vinyl records will become more reasonably valuable in the future, depending on a number of things. Scarcity is one of them. Vintage records from maybe the 50’s or 60’s that are well looked after have the potential to become worth significantly more in the future compared to newer records. Firstly, because there are a few of them out there. Secondly because most of the records held by people are mostly not great condition, so it’s very rare to find those in great condition and well looked after.
The 17 year run of vinyl
There’s quite a hopeful future for vinyl because it’s demand has been on a steady rise over the last 17 years.
Vinyl has continously been growing in terms of its value mainly because of the vintage collections of vinyl that are rare to find. This has basically inspired faith in many vinyl collectors to acquire vinyl in the hopes to sell it for a higher price in the future.
Studying the trends and prices is definitely a good move for anyone looking to get into the business of buying and selling vinyl.
Factors that influence the price of vinyl
Let’s look at the various factors that have a serious impact on the value of vinyl.
Technology
One thing that has to go into consideration with regard to the business of vinyl is simply innovation.
The greater part of innovation happening nowadays is technological.
We’ve seen the industry of physical CDs go downhill since the introduction of tech companies like Spotify and Apple Music etc.
These new ways of accessing music have also impacted the value of vinyl.
These days what is mostly sought after are the rare vintage collections that are difficult to find.
Therefore, one looking to venture into the business of buying and selling vinyl has to take into account how much technology has impacted the music industry overall.
Taking this into account gives you a clear picture of the landscape and possible effects of tech on the music market in the future.
Scarcity
One thing that also has to be put into consideration is scarcity.
Like I’ve already mentioned in various parts of this post. The selling model of vinyl is simply what can be coined as “the rarer, the better”.
Vintage records are more sought after than newer records that are in abundant supply.
So you have to take this into consideration before you even spend any money on vinyl to resell in the future.
Demand
Scarcity is definitely a function of demand.
High demand means there’s a shortage in the supply of goods available.
You therefore have to understand the demand patterns of the vinyl market so you can create your business model around it.
Make a few phone calls to key people in the vinyl industry and also talk to vinyl Store owners so they can shed some light into the industry.
The more you learn about the business of vinyl, the better your chances of actually succeeding.
Collectors
You also have to consider how many Collectors are in the market because these are generally the people that you’ll sell to as well as buy from.
So do your due diligence.
Setting yourself up for success with vinyl
Below, I’m going to walk you through some of the things that you can do to set yourself up for success in the business of vinyl.
There are many other nuances in the vinyl business besides what I’m about to explain. However, these tips are some of the core foundations that will help you make the right moves in this business.
Store your records well
According to various research one of the reasons why most people fail to ever resell their vinyl is because they’re not in great shape.
If you’re reading this you’ve probably seen and used a CD before. And you also know that when not kept well, CDs are prone to getting scratched.
The same principle applies to vinyl.
If you don’t store your vinyl well and it ends up getting scratched, it loses value and there’s a few people that would accept to get it off your hands in exchange for money.
Therefore, you should strive to store your vinyl well because this is how you preserve its value.
Find vintage material
Like I already mentioned earlier. Vintage vinyl is in high demand therefore its key that you find it and buy it at a good price.
There are a few people that still have vinyl records from the 60s and 70s. This inherently makes it sought after by many people. Especially collectors.
Hunting for vintage rare vinyl pieces should be a core part of your business.
Understand what the market craves for
Understanding demand is the sure fire way of supplying the market with what it wants.
Therefore learn the trade and master the business.
This will make dealing with vinyl easy for you.
Leverage YouTube and vinyl forums to get a good sense of what people are looking for and what they’re willing to pay for.
If you know what people will pay for, your job will be to simply hand it off to them and get your fee.
Befriend record store owners
Record store owners have a lot of data on customers even if most don’t realise it.
Therefore, its important to build alliances with them because you can build relationships with them that allow you to trade favours from each other and basically make money together.