West Sussex record store opens second branch in 'up and coming' town

James Anderson’s second Slipped Discs store opened in Shoreham High Street in April, and since then has been attracting a steady stream of customers.

James said: “It’s going well, we have a lot of interest locally. I was looking to expand and the right opportunity came up in a very prominent part of the high street. It’s an up and coming area, and the prospect of more property being build means there’s an increased customer base.

“The demographic is quite different between the two shops. In Steyning, it’s a slightly older community and the tastes are quite different. In Shoreham, we’re experiencing more sales of hip hop, dance and heavy metal. It’s certainly a younger crowd, so teenagers and above.”

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Having always been interested in music, James has been a record collector since the age of 13.

Slipped Discs in Steyning came about in 2020, when he decided to have a career change and stop commuting to London. Prior to that he was an audio engineer and electrical engineer. He added: “It’s a happy coincidence that vinyl has had a bit of a comeback, a resurgence, when I’ve fancied opening a record shop.”

Going forward, James hopes to collaborate with local businesses. In Steyning, he runs a wine and vinyl evening with a wine merchant and hopes to replicate that in Shoreham. He also wants to set up more live performances in store.

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The Shoreham store specialises in new releases, from all the major labels and many independents, with smaller second-hand offering. The Steyning branch specialises in second-hand vinyl, with many specialist top-end used collectibles, with a few new releases.

James said: “The two shops are fairly different entities. We can offer a complete service which is quite bespoke.”

Slipped Discs is part of Record Store Day, which hosts exclusive events and vinyl releases that can only be obtained from eligible independent record shops.

The next one will be held on Black Friday, in November. At the last Record Store Day, James had a queue of 60 customers snaking all the way back to East Street.