Vinyl Me Please (store, exclusives, swaps, etc)
- Thread starter Captainfog
- Start date
I've been alot happier with VMP since I've accepted the above and just know my records will get here when they get here.
Luckily I buy albums I want as soon as they come up for sale and never swap so overselling isnt really an issue for me.
I'm not saying this excuses them from being so bad at the retail/shipping/fulfillment portion, at this point they should be alot better at it. But that feeling of relief alot of people seem to have from quitting forever? I have it from just accepting my records will eventually get here and I still get to enjoy the music.
The pricing doesnt bother me that much either. Im just happy they were so well priced for awhile. I think the quality almost always matches the mid 30s price point. The exclusives are overpriced alot of the time but generally I'll just buy an indie exclusive that is available instead (It also stops my FOMO). And if it's a true exclusive, the price is more understandable.
Joe Mac
Well-Known Member
Hard disagree on the price/quality point. They have zero QC, the amount of warps and crackly pressings they send out is shocking! I’d rarely rate anything they press above the low to mid 30s on anything other than a FOMO basis.
Maybe it's because I'm closer so they spend less time in transit. But I get all 3 of their tracks every month and can't remember the last time I had something with more than maybe a very slight warp (and definitely not crackly). Also for me the price is a the lower to mid 30s so my statement stays true. So this may be strictly from a US buyer perspective.
I also have a hard time taking alot of the complints seriously because alot (not all) of their delayed exclusives are out of their hands and the regular pressings are delayed as well, not just VMP. Especially lately, I think we're starting to see more of the effects of the Apollo Fire. I don't blame them for any issues with pressing timelines or Mail issues in receiving product since that is a mess all over the US.
The issue was more their communication which IMO has definitely improved as of late.
Joe Mac
Well-Known Member
That would suggest that this was a recent development and maybe COVID related. Massively delayed, beyond their promised date, exclusives has been going on since early 2019 when even I was still a member! The vast majority of them have landed in my local as standard or indie exclusives on release date.
Last edited:
Yeah, screw that. I'd pick and choose at that price point. I also have to say that I have a much stronger tolerance for minor Warps and seam splits. I order enough online where it I drove myself crazy before I just accepted (definitely not just a VMP problem)
For sure, and if you look at my history I use to be one of the most critical of VMP in the fulfillment and shipping department, I used to have an email out to them almost every month.
Since scaling back on variant exclusives, and accepting I would get my box at SOME POINT that month, Ive been pretty satisfied. And their shipping timelines and communication (for their own pressings) have been much better this year. Though lets see what Holiday season brings since we're going on 2 years of it all falling apart badly at that time. Maybe one reason their doing their Black Friday "Sale" early this year.
Joe Mac
Well-Known Member
I’ll be honest and say the happiest thing about dropping them is that I’ve built a really good relationship with my local. They’re really sound and because the amount of custom a nutter like me gives them they look after me too with things. Also I kinda get the good feels putting money into a smaller local business.
Memo
Well-Known Member
So like if anybody got an extra copy they are willing to part with, let me know!Dinner Party sold out!Missed out
dhodo
Well-Known Member
You really think a GZ DMM is worth mid 30s (the same price as an AAA MoFi or AP or Tone Poet) prices? If all GZ DMMs start costing that much, I will have to start buying a lot less new vinyl.
yukbon
Well-Known Member
+1 on the quality control is not great
+1 on the price point is slightly insane
communication is a definite problem for them. shipping is a huge complaint for some folks but i have been lucky in that it hasn't been for me. I'll get it when I get it, NBD. but dancing the "gotta play this right away to make sure it isn't warped, or skips, or has scratches, and is in fact the actual record i ordered and bought" dance every month is not acceptable.
+1 on the price point is slightly insane
communication is a definite problem for them. shipping is a huge complaint for some folks but i have been lucky in that it hasn't been for me. I'll get it when I get it, NBD. but dancing the "gotta play this right away to make sure it isn't warped, or skips, or has scratches, and is in fact the actual record i ordered and bought" dance every month is not acceptable.
Yeah, I wish I could support my local more but they're over an hour away. They're awesome in every way and I wish I could support them more. I unfortunately live in too expensive of an area with not a young enough population for for a record store to survive for long.
So I usually stick with Bullmoose and Plaid Room for most of my local purchase while only going to my local for RSD and an occasional stop (never fucking Amazon).
But I know this sounds ridiculous and you'll disagree with me, but I look at VMP as an Indie company who I'm happy to support as well. They are doing an awesome thing in getting records pressed that are OOP, and their curation has certainly exposed someone like me to alot of new stuff (and Im certainly someone who does my own curation as well).
I truly feel none of their issues are vindictive or trying to fuck over their customer base either. I just think they are a bunch of Music Fans that are not very business savvy which has led to some big issues that have not been the best for their customer base. Not making excuses for them or saying it's ok because they should have fixed this alot quicker and better, but I also don't take it personally. And they have certainly hooked me up a couple times in the past as well, not to the extent of Nathan, but I have definitely had examples from support that show they appreciate my loyalty as a customer.
I mean, I understand how their shipping model works and that bundling means orders are held up sometimes by delayed items. By removing items that are out of their hands, it limits the chance of delays. I still definitely buy a good amount of exclusives (My box is between 5-8/month usually) but the more you add the more chance there is for delay. This is how ALOT of stores work, so I don't hold it as a personal criticism again VMP directly or their ability to deliver at all.
This is probably my main thing. Most of the criticism of VMP seems to be for the same things most other stores also have or little grips.
Expensive? Certainly common, especially for exclusive colors. (Newbury comics, Urban Outfitters, Artists/labels/musictoday with ridiculous shipping). And don't get me started on MMJ.
Shipping Delays? This is an industry wide issue. The fact that you pay a the time of purchase may make it worse, but they are certainly not the ones guilty of that either. Bullmoose and Rough Trade are the only non-big corporate stores I can think of charge at shipping.
Snark on twitter/Storf hatred? I don't get the Storf hate at all. He's a good dude. Definitely may have a chip on his shoulder from high school (same as many people), and now has his dream job and is a bit snarky, but I don't know why people take it so personally. Maybe it's from being a New Yorker with an Irish family married into an italian family, but Snark/Sarcasm is just part of everyday talk for me.
Curation? This is the dumbest criticism I see. There is no way to please everybody when you pick a monthly record. You have to be open for curation to an extent, and have somewhat diverse taste. Every month there is a mix of people complaining that a record is available everywhere, or that its not the best pick from the artist.
Swaps? They are one of the only subscription companies that even offers as extensive swaps as they do, and store credit. Magnolia, Secretly, Third Man. Nowhere near as flexible.
Their website does suck though for sure and the CS response times was not excusable.....
I guess I'm just surprised to always see so much VMP hate from people who quit awhile ago. If I got fed up with them (and I dont blame anyone who did, especially after migration fiasco), I would have quit and forgotten about them. Probably never even drop into the VMP threads more than every once in awhile.
I personally hate MMJ, and despite their products being outstanding, think their business model and pricing is despicable and have no idea why someone would spend the money they do on products that will almost definitely get great audiophile releases for cheaper in the future. But people can spend money how they want. No sense in getting stressed about company that doesnt effect me at all.
I know there is alot of GZ hate but most of VMPs tracks pressings are great, and seems to be the overwhelming opinion when they are received every month.
Yes, many of their classics release are close Tone Poet if not quite as great (and I have all but I think 3 or 4 currently released Tone Poets, huge fan of that line and one of the best bargains in the industry. Also since they released by Blue Note themselves, you have to account for no licensing costs which allow the incredible price).
Most MoFi's I see are at minimum $50, and AP's are a bit more but yes, comparable in quality. Even if AP may be a bit more consistent when you take Classics. AP doesnt have a flawless record either, they just arent a subscription model so dont have every release under the microscope as much.
dhodo
Well-Known Member
My comment had nothing to do with quality. Getting a record pressed GZ DMM is CHEAP. The vast majority of records that are pressed that way are sold in the low 20s (not that rare to see prices below $20), including 2xLPs often, though sometimes those are higher 20s.
MoFis and APs standard pricing is $35 for 1xLP and their relatively new inflated pricing for 2xLPs is $50, which is a huge markup and they definitely make a lot more on the 2xLP.
I agree with you that Classics is priced fairly if you can get them mid-30s, my comment was for the rest of the records they sell, of which the majority are not close to the cost to manufacture Classics presses.
Edit: Apparently AP 2xLPs are $55 now? This is getting out of hand.
I mean, It's up to every consumer to decide what price they think is fair. I'm not going to pretend to know how much these cost for VMP in total when I know absolutely nothing about licensing costs, which is definitely a big portion of their burden per pressing.
I personally don't care where something was pressed and how much it cost them to make. If I think the record sounds excellent, and in the price range I'm willing to pay, that's it. Most of the records they have pressed at GZ sounds great, and I highly doubt their profit margin on each release is as high as people think. Also, If I think a product is really good and I was ok paying the cost, the operating costs are of no concern of mine.
dhodo
Well-Known Member
I have no problem with you being happy with the price. Glad you enjoy it.
For me personally, they have priced me out and a big part of that is based on comparing their prices to other reissue labels. Not sure why licensing would be more for VMP than for anyone else. I don't doubt they aren't making a good profit, but my equally blind assumption would be that the cause is that they are doing a terrible job running the business.
If their curation matched my tastes well enough that I loved every Classics release, I would probably continue a subscription for it only. Currently I am deciding to either cancel or take a 3 month bridge deal at the end of the month. I can't justify a whole year at the moment.
I think we are on the same page in terms of not taking any of their failings personally. It would be cool if I could actually be excited about supporting them as a company but with the way they act I think of them as a terrible retail store with some occasionally great exclusives that I want.
I don't share your confidence that your box will eventually arrive, considering they recently completely deleted an order of mine from their system and I had to beg someone in CS to respond to me for 3 weeks to get them to realize that and ship me one. I think your implication that others may be happier if they just accept shipping might take a while diminishes genuine difficulties with the company like this that you have been lucky not to experience.
I completely agree their bad at the retail piece. For a small company, the operations part and lack of communication between departments is a crazy. Its certainly annoying but not a dealbreaker for me at least since I still get the products I ordered and am very happy with the quality at the end of the day (Ive been a victim of many oversells but it's been a long time). If someone feels differently, I completely understand that.
And good point on the jacking up on old prices. I'm fine with the price hikes but raising the prices on old stock by so much was no bueno.
I've been a member for years and experienced my fair share of issues. I've had orders delayed with no explanation. CS emails go into a black hole. Well over a dozen oversells. Months of damaged records.
End of the day, it's just records and things have improved this year (despite still having alot to be worked on). The issues are annoying but I don't understand the strong hate for this company especially from people who claim to have walked away and "feel so free" despite regularly jumping on VMP threads to talk about them.