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from cityview

Homer’s, a Nebraska-based music retail store reminiscent of record shops 20 years ago selling used CDs and vinyl as well as new releases, video games, DVDs, tickets and rock memorabilia, will close its 2727 100th St., Urbandale location on Sept. 20 after opening 14 months ago. “We’ve spent a ridiculous amount of money on marketing and advertising and have tried every proven strategy we employ in the Omaha and Lincoln markets (and others we don’t) and we’ve only been able to barely move the needle from the day we opened,” said General Manager Mike Fratt in a release, adding that revenue is up at its Nebraska stores while Des Moines has seen declines the last two months. “We’re so far from goal, and it was a modest one at that (well below our lowest volume store in Omaha), this tells us that not even relocating in Des Moines would make this happen… Music retail is a very tough business and offers only a slim profit margin… We tried, took a risk and it didn’t work out. Life happens.”

Where will JV work!? I never did get to check this location out.... the Omaha stores seem to do really well....whateve...ZZZ is still around.
-a

Nice store, but they never had a very good selection of vinyl. I never actually found anything there that I really wanted to buy. I think they would have done better somewhere else in town. I had trouble finding it everytime I was headed that direction.

No care ever.

No care ever x 2.


I remember when that one dude who worked with the company came to the forum and explained that they picked that location for a reason and figured it was the best possible spot in the metro area for it.

I had trouble finding it too and when I did, I wasn't overly impressed. Honestly, I think putting a store like that in the suburbs is a smart idea but the location completely sucked. Maybe if they were around Cobblestone or around Half Price Books or something it would be completely different.

yeah, worst location ever.
I mean...100th street?
I doubt a lot of Johnstonians/Urbandalians/Westies cared too much about it.

Hank Fist wrote: I doubt a lot of Johnstonians/Urbandalians/Westies cared too much about it.

I don't know, to me it's always seemed like there's more people who would be into that sort of thing in the suburbs, especially those ones. Location still sucked though and it was in no way shape or form worth a special trip from where I live. I went once when I was out in Waukee and then another time I went when I was going out to Nebraska Furniture Mart.


Edit: I would've liked Homer's if they came here pre-internet mailorder era when some of that kind of stuff was hard to find around here.

Yeah, I don't know how they could have expected any kind of success in the suburbs. Probably would have made it in the Drake area or downtown... where people who care about music enough to choose an independent place over Best Buy live.

i need a job!

nobody told me it was closing. i found out by reading it on the juice website a couple weeks ago. awesome. and, in fact, i didn't know it was as soon as the 20th until reading it here just now. double awesome.

t'was a silly location indeed.

luke's right, the vinyl wasn't very interesting. but i reckon that wasn't really their specialty anyhow. i did get lots of cd's there that i don't really find anywhere else around town, so i'm sad to see it go for that reason. i'm also sad to see it go because rent doesn't have a track-record of paying itself.

it was a good job for me while it lasted. it was a good source of cd's for me while it lasted. most folks didn't know it existed while it lasted. it was stuck in a confusing location while it lasted. while it lasted, while it lasted, we aaallllll faaaaaaallllllll doooowwwwn.

robdigi wrote:Yeah, I don't know how they could have expected any kind of success in the suburbs. Probably would have made it in the Drake area or downtown... where people who care about music enough to choose an independent place over Best Buy live.

....You're from West Des Moines. Most of the people who post here grew up in the suburbs, I believe. Still think that the suburbs were a good choice, just not the specific location they picked.

I'm from West Des Moines, but I traveled to People's or ZZZ if I wanted to buy something from a store. I ordered just about everything else online. Even when you are from the suburbs, you know that they are NOT the place to look for anything outside the mainstream. Growing up there, I can assure you, there's not a lot of people who appreciate "record store culture". Best Buy has the suburbs on lockdown. You can't really compete with them, unless you're selling vinyl... you could compete with them on selection, but the city has a far higher volume of hipster types/record collectors who like esoteric music.. 4th street area, East village.. they are the places to put up record stores.. the audience already commutes to those places for entertainment and "culture".

This is a touchy subject for me.


I've been to so many cities that are even smaller and lamer than Des Moines.. but they have good record stores with plenty of clientele. I suppose most of them are college towns, but that shouldn't matter as long as you have the population to support them... which Des Moines does. What is it about Des Moines that it can't support this sort of thing? Des Moines -is- a cultural black hole, and is becoming more and more of a yuppie-family franchise paradise by the minute.. that shouldn't mean that there isn't still demand out there, but I'm beginning to think that the residents of Des Moines (in general, present company excluded) are just too boring to care.

El Rhino wrote:

Hank Fist wrote: I doubt a lot of Johnstonians/Urbandalians/Westies cared too much about it.

I don't know, to me it's always seemed like there's more people who would be into that sort of thing in the suburbs, especially those ones. Location still sucked though and it was in no way shape or form worth a special trip from where I live. I went once when I was out in Waukee and then another time I went when I was going out to Nebraska Furniture Mart.


Edit: I would've liked Homer's if they came here pre-internet mailorder era when some of that kind of stuff was hard to find around here.

yeah, the kids around the area probably just order off the internet, the evangelicals go to Wellspring, and the rest listen to KGGO.
that's right, i lumped the whole area into three groups.

Homer's had a lot of sweet shit, but I knew it wouldn't last long.

Weak.

robdigi wrote:This is a touchy subject for me.


I've been to so many cities that are even smaller and lamer than Des Moines.. but they have good record stores with plenty of clientele. I suppose most of them are college towns, but that shouldn't matter as long as you have the population to support them... which Des Moines does. What is it about Des Moines that it can't support this sort of thing? Des Moines -is- a cultural black hole, and is becoming more and more of a yuppie-family franchise paradise by the minute.. that shouldn't mean that there isn't still demand out there, but I'm beginning to think that the residents of Des Moines (in general, present company excluded) are just too boring to care.

Shut up.

That location sucked ass. It took me a while to find the place and I must have sat there trying to make a left from their driveway for about 5 minutes.

It should have been in the Drake Area. Next to BPE or Mar's. A month ago my son and I were walking back home from BPE and he asking what the neighborhood was like when I was younger. We were standing on 24th and University and it dawned on me that when I was a teenage there was 3 records stores in that block. I spent a lot of time in that area. The first 30 or 40 records I bought can out of that area. Then they all moved out, one to Ingersol that closed within months, Archives moved up to 30th and University and lasted a long time and the other folded. I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that at one point you could look for something you wanted in 3 or 4 businesses within walking distance. The idea that record stores need to be on other ends of town is silly. It's like bars if there is one all by itself it will do ok but if it's on a strip then they are going to do better business. Look at 4th st or court and the amount of business those places get simply cause of bar hopping.

The Old Market in Omaha is another example. Most of the oldest businesses down there are the record stores. Cause you could hit 3 or 4 of them in an hour. Hommer's should have understood that. Sure their suburb stores make more money but the branding of the name has more to do with it. Loyal clients that live near the suburb locations that nolonger have to drive to Old Market to get records.

For a while Best Place Ever was selling CDs, in fact I bought a GI box set from them. I got the impression that they cut the CDs cause no one was buying them but it wasn't their main business. I was kind of bummed.

You would think that with the growth in the area it would have been the first choice.

ive always thought the best location would be next to a high school.

i only went to homers 2 or 3 times. it stunk. i dislike incense greatly. makes my records stink.

i miss archives. i spent every dime there for a couple of years. my room was wallpapered in giant misfits posters.

Mars Cafe is selling local stuff now, btw.

Hank Fist wrote:Mars Cafe is selling local stuff now, btw.

Yeah but who really wants most of it. It's a far cry from a sellection of hard to find CDs or records.

On the subject of Mar's, did there prices go up or something? $3 for an ice coffee? When did coffee cost the same as a well cocktail? I know for a fact the cost isn't as high. This maybe be a bad idea with Whorebucks lowering their prices.

I speak the truth kids. I love Des Moines, but these days, it just isn't a town where that kind of shit can succeed. In my 15 years of buying music in Des Moines there has never been a record store of the caliber you see in Iowa City, Minneapolis, KC, or any other surrounding population centers. You can argue about location or whatever, but until someone gets it right I stand by what I said.

It's true.

I've waited for the records stores in Des Moines to turn into something awesome for way too long. Shit is just not going to happen.

-Joe.

I would have went there if it was in Des Moines. Except for work, I don't have any reason to go to WDM or the Stepford area.

robdigi wrote:there has never been a record store of the caliber you see in Iowa City, Minneapolis, KC, or any other surrounding population centers.

There's a good record store in KC? Maybe there used to be, but I couldn't find any evidence of that while visiting there this summer.

jnice wrote:

robdigi wrote:there has never been a record store of the caliber you see in Iowa City, Minneapolis, KC, or any other surrounding population centers.

There's a good record store in KC? Maybe there used to be, but I couldn't find any evidence of that while visiting there this summer.

Granted it's been years but did you try the Westport area. I think Record Collector is still down there and maybe Alleycat. Remember it's been about 10 years since I went record shopping down there.

Record collector comes to mind. There's a good hip hop record/head shop somewhere in the ghetto, but the name escapes me. It's been 3 years or so since my last trip there... anyway, compared to what we have in Des Moines: WORLD CLASS SHIT

someone open a shop. in the old Lost Souls building. any kind of shop. someone worked on it for a day and all the tools are in the same place as four years ago.

I think Record Collector is still down there and maybe Alleycat.

anyway, compared to what we have in Des Moines: WORLD CLASS SHIT

I don't think either of these places is open anymore (I did a quick search on Google and neither place seemed to pop up). I think the only record stores (not specializing in hip-hop/R&B) are now in the suburb of Shawnee, KS: One had a nice vinyl collection, but was WAY overpriced for anyone to actually buy the stuff they had (which is why I refuse to call it a "store"). The other had a lot of used vinyl and not much new...pretty outdated, but I enjoyed that store much more than the pricier place I mentioned earlier. I was very disappointed in the lack of good record stores in/around KC, considering the size of the city. Sioux Falls, SD, ("Ernie November") and Fort Collins, CO, ("The Finest") had better stores!

robdigi wrote:I speak the truth kids. I love Des Moines, but these days, it just isn't a town where that kind of shit can succeed. In my 15 years of buying music in Des Moines there has never been a record store of the caliber you see in Iowa City, Minneapolis, KC, or any other surrounding population centers. You can argue about location or whatever, but until someone gets it right I stand by what I said.

i think this is more akin to everybody trying to have their own "scene" and the dsm im better than you cause _____ attitudes.
and "dsm sucks but its sweet but i had to move to ______ to accomplish _____ cause ______"

we're all good at excuses. i mailordered most things until the internet. then i moved away, which is good for anyone to do, made me appreciate everything. record stores fail because not enough profit. same as wal mart or whatever.

joseph wrote:

robdigi wrote:I speak the truth kids. I love Des Moines, but these days, it just isn't a town where that kind of shit can succeed. In my 15 years of buying music in Des Moines there has never been a record store of the caliber you see in Iowa City, Minneapolis, KC, or any other surrounding population centers. You can argue about location or whatever, but until someone gets it right I stand by what I said.

i think this is more akin to everybody trying to have their own "scene" and the dsm im better than you cause _____ attitudes.
and "dsm sucks but its sweet but i had to move to ______ to accomplish _____ cause ______"

we're all good at excuses. i mailordered most things until the internet. then i moved away, which is good for anyone to do, made me appreciate everything. record stores fail because not enough profit. same as wal mart or whatever.

We used to say, "Available everywhere but Des Moines." Which was true until suddenly Best Buy had stuff that most of the local shops were too scared to stock. Of course jump ahead 5 or 6 years and even Best Buy doesn't handle most of that stuff. For years the only oned where Peeples and Archives and Al would still more than likely be in business if his accountant wouldn't have ripped him off. But even Archives really didn't have that much stuff. Peeples seemed to have something just about everytime I went in there that was at least a little interesting.

The bottom line is that a record store is a very hard business to make money at. You are a speciality store in a business that shifts with the passing wind of pop music. If you market yourself toward the underground you miss out on a major part of your client base. If you don't stock the underground stuff then you are losing a majority of your business to the chain store. You are really dealing with three types of clients. The pop music fan that will buy only what is new and established but is really only looking for the radio single. Which means they are more likely to buy the song on EvilTunes. The next is the underground type that is hipper then sliced bread and only wants the most unknown, obscure and newest. Then there is the record collector which is looking for the deal. They main goal in life is to brag about the mono copy of the Beatles White Album that they got off a dumb record shop employee for $2. They will spend hours looking through your used section, using their unemployable knowledge to find the jem they are unwilling to pay what it's worth for. Understand someone of us is a combo of all three but the bottom line is how do you balance your stock to make all of them happy.

Media files are taking a huge cut and just like home taping it is the lastest scape goat. There maybe something in it from the stand point that a new generation is coming of age that ahve never stepped into a record store. Think about it why would you drive somewhere, when you can get a better sellection and most cases cheaper sitting at your computer with a credit card. Unless someone can come up with a way to market buying media files at a store that you can't find online, the record store is going to turn into another vintage/antique/flea market store. "Yeah it's fun to look at all that old shit but who pays that much for a record?"

the best way i know to successfully run a business in 5 easy steps:

1) don't plan to take ANY money home for at least 3 years
2) squat your business(or live with your parents). rent free living is ideal
3) steal food or use food stamps
4) keep it worker owned--use cooperative model
5) wait until cityview votes you "best of" two years in a row, sit back and reap the sweet, sweet benefits.

speaking of which, bpe's 5 year anniversary is coming up in Dec. keep a lookout for some type of happening.