"Florida Record Store Goes the Way of the 8-Track"

[esteban]

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/12/us...=fb-share&_r=0

Sad news for those of us in South FL. SPECS in Coral Gables is closing down.

This was the last great big-chain record store standing in the Miami/Dade and Broward counties. Most of the items for sale were overpriced (some severely, almost laughably so), as one would expect, but the selection was unrivaled. Tons of vinyl, a great horror DVD section, foreign titles, tons of used items and an ENTIRE room dedicated just to classical music... A few days prior to this, our local Barnes & Noble also closed its doors. One year before that it was another B&N a few minutes from work, in the same city. I am undoubtedly to blame, like most of you, since I buy a lot from Amazon, but I would always make sure all of these local business would get some of my $$$. I will miss driving to Specs once a month (it was a 25-mile drive each way) and I'm already feeling the withdrawal symptoms of having no Barnes & Noble a few minutes away. Badly...

I frankly can not foresee, and honestly want no part of, a future where there are NO book/magazine/music/movie stores in existence AT ALL...

[esteban]

And here's another article on the subject, with a local spin:

Needle reaches the inner groove for Spec’s - Coral Gables - MiamiHerald.com

[Jferguson66]

I will be in Palm Beach in march. Are there any decent record stores anywhere nearby? I know Hollywood is not near PB but thought you might know.

[Royzak]

I feel your pain mate.

[LordoftheRingsEE]

-- Welcome to the future of the Internet (music downloads) Esteban!
...Real stores (music, records, CDs, etc.) have real physical payments; rent, mortgage, hydro/electric bills, phone line bills, water bills, property taxes, etc.

* Somehow, it's like deja vu, and I can almost anticipate someone's response.

[esteban]

Originally Posted by Jferguson66

I will be in Palm Beach in march. Are there any decent record stores anywhere nearby? I know Hollywood is not near PB but thought you might know.

Not as far as I know, sadly. The only independent stores left are Radioactive Records in Fort Lauderdale and Yesterday & Today in Coral Gables. These are small, "hole-in-the-wall", vinyl-only mom-and-pop type stores, and not chain behemoths like Specs, that also carried tons of movies and CD's. Both types of stores have their pros and cons in my view.

[asiufy]

Damn, I used to work in Coral Gables, and would frequently stop by there on the way home for some shopping...
Very good store, but yeah, I don't remember their prices being particularly great.
It's sad, as the experience of browsing many stacks of records/CDs is one that can't be replicated online...

alexandre

[tigerhonaker]

Originally Posted by esteban

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/12/us...=fb-share&_r=0

Sad news for those of us in South FL. SPECS in Coral Gables is closing down.

This was the last great big-chain record store standing in the Miami/Dade and Broward counties. Most of the items for sale were overpriced (some severely, almost laughably so), as one would expect, but the selection was unrivaled. Tons of vinyl, a great horror DVD section, foreign titles, tons of used items and an ENTIRE room dedicated just to classical music... A few days prior to this, our local Barnes & Noble also closed its doors. One year before that it was another B&N a few minutes from work, in the same city. I am undoubtedly to blame, like most of you, since I buy a lot from Amazon, but I would always make sure all of these local business would get some of my $$$. I will miss driving to Specs once a month (it was a 25-mile drive each way) and I'm already feeling the withdrawal symptoms of having no Barnes & Noble a few minutes away. Badly...

I frankly can not foresee, and honestly want no part of, a future where there are NO book/magazine/music/movie stores in existence AT ALL...

I frankly can not foresee, and honestly want no part of, a future where there are NO book/magazine/music/movie stores in existence AT ALL...

I agree ...........


Terry