HOLLYWOOD—I’m not sure what is unfolding in Hollywood to the point where it is impacting retail, but I don’t like it one single bit. I knew at some point the notion of CDs would be non-existent, which you truly cannot find them in many retail establishments. Yeah, Taylor Swift’s latest album was released on CD, but it was mainly streaming for music and vinyl where the bulk of her sales came from.
Yes, it is hard to say this in 2025 that CDs are a thing of the past. I’ll be honest the last CD I purchased had to be in 2009. I simply stopped purchasing them because I got tired of wasting my money on music that wasn’t top tier. I don’t want to buy a CD that only has 2 songs worth listening to.
With that said, vinyl has witnessed an amazing explosion in the past 5 years or so. I mean before 2020 there were NOT many people at all who owned record players and utilized them to play music. Maybe the older generation like my parents, but not millennials or Gen Z. Oh, that has changed, but the problem is vinyl records are NOT AFFORDABLE. Go visit Target, Best Buy or any record store and you will see how expensive vinyl albums truly are. There is no way I’m paying $40-$60 for an album; I’m sorry that is absolutely crazy and bonkers, and I don’t care who the hell you are talking to.
A CD was like $10; the music industry wants you to pay like 5x that amount for a single album nowadays if not way more, which means you are in a situation where your money truly has to be stretched to get what it is that you truly want. This is the same sentiment for home entertainment like DVDs, Blu-Ray Discs and 4K Discs. Go to Target, you’re not going to find any of these things anymore. If you want to purchase a movie for home viewing that you can permanently own and insert into a device, good luck.
Streaming has changed that; you’re expected to purchase such items online for delivery to your home. They are no longer in stores, and I find that crazy to say the least. The same applies to Best Buy; they no longer sell any of these items in store, I think within the last month or two they have placed some DVDs, Blu-Ray discs and 4K discs of classic movies on their website via third parties for purchase.
Like I don’t understand some retail establishments. It feels like they want Amazon to be the kind of all things you buy. Yes, you can get stuff quicker and it can be delivered directly to your home. You know what else you can do: go to the actual establishment and buy it yourself. This is why we continue to see so many brick-and-mortar establishments go out of business and close their doors. The things you want to buy you cannot find them in stores at all.
I like buying movies; I like having them as collectibles. I’m a movie collector, but it has literally been a year since the last movie I purchased on Blu-Ray. Why? No retailers advertise them anymore, and you’ll be lucky to find one in stores and the prices are just, “Ridiculous, I’m sorry.” I shouldn’t have to go to like 6 to 7 retailers to try to find something that used to be the norm.
However, you don’t have many electronic retail establishments anymore. I mean I have Best Buy, Target, Walmart (to a degree), FYE (to the stores that are still around) and that’s it. If you know any others, please let me know because I’m listening. Costco and Sam’s Club don’t fall into that group because they don’t really sell those things. You can only purchase so many things on streaming services/devices because you’re going to RUN OUT OF SPACE. I will be damned if I am going to delete or get rid of things I spent my hard money on when it comes to entertainment.
Hello Hollywood and music industry, there is still money to be made from purchasing movies and music beyond on the streaming platforms. If there are any retailers who want to consider a new business establishment that sells such things, hate to say it, but you could have a money maker on your hands.
