Jesse Carl Vinyl is a small record store located in downtown Lakeland, FL. The store does not offer consignments and does not receive regular visits from major record label marketing reps. It participates in local "punk rock flea markets" and First Friday events by keeping the store open late. The store had a few leftover Record Store Day exclusives organized in its own section. It sells simple tote bags as its only merch item. The store would not be well-suited for an artist release event due to its small size, but asking them to stock a local artist's album could work.

1. JesseCarlVinyl
L
a
kel
a
nd, FL
M
a
tt Keiper

2. ExtendedPlayAlbum
C
a
n’t Help Myself - 2 Brothers on the 4th Floor & DA Smooth B
a
ron MC
• Finding an EP at this shop was
tough. When I asked the clerk if
they had any, she said there are
some but they would be spread
across the shop. Alternatively, she
directed me to the 7” section, but
these were all singles.
• This is an EP because it features
between 3-6 songs and a runtime
under 30 minutes (Output, n.d.).

3. LongPlayAlbum
…Anywhere but Here - The At
a
ris
• Here is an LP by The Ataris (great band!).
• There are di
ff
erent de
fi
nitions for an LP
depending on where you look. The
article I found lists and LP as between
30-50 minutes long and featuring 10-12
tracks. The article also notes that records
can hold up to 40 minutes of material on
each side but that most artists choose
not to make albums that long because
the quality tends to degrade after a
certain point (Wiebe, 2020).

4. ResearchQuestions
Jesse Carl Vinyl does not offer consignments. The clerk stated that they will buy
directly from artists that wish to sell to them and pay them up front for the records.
Do you offer consignment for indie
a
rtists?
How often do m
a
rketing reps visit from record l
a
bels?
Never had anyone from a major label visit. They have had some indie labels visit,
mostly Florida based indies. However, these visits are do not happen very often.
She did not elaborate on this.

5. Events
Jesse Carl Vinyl is a small shop in Downtown
Lakeland. They do not host any in-store events. The
clerk told me that they participate in any “punk rock
f
lea market” events in town and will set up a booth and
sell records. The next event like this is in September.
Given their downtown location, the shop also
participates in First Friday events. They do not
operate a booth at these events but are listed as a
vendor and keep the shop open after normal business
hours to participate

6. RecordStoreDay
Jesse Carl Vinyl had a few leftover Record Store Day
exclusives in stock. They were nicely organized in
their own section and clearly labeled. I included a
picture of the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band’s exclusive
that was in this section.
There were also some more obscure ones that were
labeled as RSD exclusives that were found in the
clearance section. The clerk had mentioned that
they did not have many left, and she was correct as
the section was rather small and almost empty.

7. Swag
The store did not have much in the form of swag around
the shop. The only item I could
f
ind were these tote bags
that they were selling for $6. Simple and cheap, I didn’t
test it out but they appear to be large enough to
f
it a few
records inside. Smart move on their part.
I am including Promos on this slide because I was unable
to locate any promo material for a product or artist. The
only promotional-like material I found was the poster for
First Friday that was located on the counter.

8. Promos
I was unable to locate any promo
material for a product or artist. The
only promotional-like material I
found was the poster for First Friday
that was located on the counter
(image featured on the “Events”
slide).

9. Re
f
lection
I could see myself using this store for a local artist’s release. It is the only true record store
in Lakeland. However, Lakeland is a small city and this is a small shop in a side section of
downtown. For this reason I wouldn’t put much effort into it. Maybe ask if they would buy
a handful of copies to sell.
I would avoid any attempt at an in-store event because it is far too small of a space to
accommodate that type of event. An acoustic performance out front might be feasible so
long as the restaurants that
f
lank the shop wouldn’t mind that. For these reasons it would
be best to not put too much effort into this shop unless the artist was from Lakeland.
There would be more to be gained from focusing on Tampa or Orlando instead.
Would you use this store for
a
loc
a
l indie
a
rtist’s
a
lbum rele
a
se? If so, wh
a
t would you do?

10. References
Jesse Carl Vinyl. (n.d.). Jesse Carl Vinyl. Retrieved July 7, 2022,
from https://www.jessecarlvinyl.com/
Output. (n.d.). What Is an EP? Why Should I Release One? Retrieved
July 7, 2022, from https://output.com/blog/what-is-an-ep
Wiebe, D. A. (2020, December 29). What Is The Difference Between
Lp And Ep In Music? Music Industry How To. Retrieved July 7,
2022, from https://www.musicindustryhowto.com/difference-lp-ep-
music/