Golden Discs tunes up to open three new stores

Retailer will have 19 outlets to complement online business

Golden Discs is opening three new stores this month, bringing its store count to 19 as it aims to attract customers back into bricks and mortar music outlets.

Last weekend the brand returned to Liffey Valley shopping centre in west Dublin seven years after closing there. This weekend, the company will open in Kilkenny's Market Cross Shopping Centre and the Crescent Shopping Centre in Limerick, where it also previously had a store. The company also has 80 Tesco concessions across the country.

Golden Discs will add 30 new employees.

The business has also developed an online presence, which is “trading ahead of expectations”.

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Deeper range

"Our website carries a significantly deeper range of product than the typical store so is more attractive for customers looking for lesser known product," said Golden Discs chief executive Stephen Fitzgerald.

The company reported a profit of €173,704 for 2017 on sales of €12.1 million, despite the growing popularity of music streaming services.

This year, sales of vinyl products have advanced 60 per cent. “The vinyl renaissance shows no sign of abating,” said Mr Fitzgerald.

“The major labels are reissuing catalogue albums every week as well as all the new releases. What started as a niche format for hard-core music fans is more and more becoming mainstream as music lovers use streaming services for convenience and purchase physical product for tangibility,” he added.

Peter Hamilton

Peter Hamilton

Peter Hamilton is a contributor to The Irish Times specialising in business