Record stores throughout the country--such as Tower Records, Virgin Megastore and The Wherehouse--have been in decline this past decade, 7-Eleven said. The remaining national chains are struggling, it added. Although there are fewer places to buy CDs, music in the CD format is still in demand and accounts for 300 million units in annual sales.
"But fear not. There is hope for [image-nocss] those who still want to buy music on a CD, in a jewel case, in a store, instead of downloading it online. There is, indeed, a store that still believes in delivering top-quality multi-genre, multi-generational music ... and surprise--all your favorite CDs are available at your local 7-Eleven," the company said.
CDs are available in 2,600 7-Eleven stores nationally.
The business model's success relies on the ability to really know the neighborhood where the stores are located, said Thump CEO Bill Walker. "It's all about niche marketing. We stock CDs at these stores that cater to the types of customers that frequent that store and to their musical tastes. Whether it is urban, hip hop, country, rock or whatever genre one can imagine, we find out, through market research, what the traffic [demographics] in that particular store requires and fill that demand."
For the industry at large, CD music sales are still 65% of sales, but for Walker and his Thump label, CDs account for 80% of sales.
"This target audience is someone who usually goes to the convenience store down the street in their neighborhood. It catches people off-guard. CDs at 7-Eleven? Really? It never occurs to them that they could find their favorite CDs on sale at 7-Eleven ... until they see them," said Walker. "And bingo--an impulse buy!"
Each market is unique. The Long Beach, Calif., store sells a lot of Old-School Rap and Freestyle (80s Pop) CDs. In Fullerton, Calif., customers want Old-School Classics and Oldies.
Rock, country, urban, funk, hip-hop ... the stores stock all popular genres. Thump Records and Art Laboe's Original Sound label is available. Customers can also pick up the Old School Gold series featuring the funk of the Gap Band, Zapp and Mary Wells, as well as the upcoming Cruzin to Motown Series. The stores also stock Carlos Santana, Rene y Rene, the Brenton Wood and local and regional artists.
"Everything is bargain-priced under $10," Walker said. "CDs are still your best value at $9.99. A trip to the convenience store can now boost the broad experience of picking up a six-pack of soda, a hot dog and a burrito, a bag of chips--and the popular music CD of your choice all in one visit. iTunes can't do that."
The 2,600 national participating stores are in the following markets: Chicago, North Chicago, Northwest Detroit, Quad Cities, South Chicago, Southwest Detroit, St. Louis, West Chicago, Arlington/Alexandria, Baltimore City, Delaware/Delaware County, Montgomery County, Southern Maryland, New York Nassau, New York Queens, New York Suffolk, Southern New England, Western New England, North Florida, Daytona/Melbourne, North Orlando, South Orlando, Tampa, Patriot, Charlottesville, Fairfax County, Hampton, Norfolk, Richmond, Virginia Beach, Penn Jersey, Bucks Montgomery Counties, Central New Jersey, North New Jersey, South New Jersey, Southern Florida Coast, Fort Myers, Miami/Dade, Palm Beach, West Florida, Greater Los Angeles, Central Los Angeles, Gold Coast, Inland Empire, Inland Valley, Orange Coast, South Coast, Southern Los Angeles, Lone Star, Plano/Richardson, South East Dallas, South Texas, Northern California/Nevada, Capital Valley, Central Valley/Coastal, East Bay, Sierra Nevada, South Bay Market, Pacific Desert, Arizona, Desert Coast, Las Vegas East, Las Vegas West North County, San Diego South East County, Pacific Northwest, North Puget Sound, Oregon, Oregon/Eastern Washington, South Puget Sound, Rocky Mountain, North Denver, South Colorado, Utah and West Denver.
Based in Dallas, 7-Eleven operates, franchises or licenses more than 8,400 7-Eleven stores in North America. Globally, there are approximately 40,900 7-Eleven stores in 16 countries. During 2010, 7-Eleven stores worldwide generated total sales close to $63 billion.
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