Zodiac Record Dealers, Wandsworth Town
Much more upsetting than the decline of HMV is the shutting of shops such as this one. Its signage still remains just off Wandsworth High Street but its windows are shuttered and withdrawn.
It’s the kind of shop that reminds me of Empire Records, a place where the staff love music and dance around on cue. Unfortunately this shop was never able to fully embrace the ‘Damn the man’ philosophy and is no longer in operation. Here are some photos I took of the frontage.
When these sorts of shops close we only have ourselves to blame.
Agreed! I used to support my local record shop when it was open but not everyone does.
This store is a ghost
Inside there are broken boxes
Frayed masking-tape on corners
Where was once the sound
Of Drive-In Saturday
Dusty silence rings out
Victim to the traffic
How much of our local youth
Formed their character here
Burnt pleasure onto their memory
How much our sense of anticipation
Looked forward to eleven o’clock
hello there do you have this number now?
I first visited this business at its previous location in Lower Richmond Road in Putney – close to where the boat race starts – in 1963. That shop has not survived. I visited the Wandsworth shop a few times in the 1990’s, after they had switched to CD’s.and bagged a bunch of cassettes which he was phasing out. I made a trip back to the area last Saturday, to find the shop firmly closed. There was a contact telephone number which I rang, and learned that the property had been had been acquired in 2009. Sigh. Another part of my youth fades and vanishes. There used to be a number of secondhand record shops in south London. I am told that few survived the introduction of V.A.T. I’m now living in Sussex, where vinyl abounds in Oxfam shops.
In the 1980s, I lived in a neighbouring street, Tonsley Hill. The 75% cassette refund sign relates to a then trading system. There was a rental/purchase scheme based on “club” membership. You registered to join the shop club. If you “purchased” a cassette at the marked price, then there was the option of keeping the tape. Alternatively, you could return the cassette within a period (ten days or so) and receive a 75% refund. Effectively, renting the tape for 25% of the cost. If the cassette was damaged, you still only got 25%. This way, the owner avoided consumer rights law! His idea was that used cassettes were risky – you couldn’t detect faults by simple inspection. The owner said that the risk was shared between him and the purchaser. He believed that it was easier to spot a damaged CD, so this club was needed!
Hi Eric! Thanks so much for sharing this information – it all helps to build a picture of the social history of this area. An interesting rental system indeed!