Nearly 12 Million Vinyl Records Sold in 2020

If you thought the pandemic would take its toll on businesses like those that sell vinyl records and other music forms, think again.

In 2020, about 12 million vinyl records sold. This was part of more than 16 million pieces of physical music sold worldwide. Physical music witnessed a 40% increase in sales over 2019.

This was the finding of Discogs 2020 Report. Discogs is the world’s leading database, marketplace and community for physical music.

The growth in physical music sales in 2020 contradicts with the predominantly gloomy business outlook many other industries experienced due to immense disruption caused by the pandemic. It shows that music fans are robust and determined not to let the pitfalls of a pandemic get in the way of purchasing their favorite music.

Vinyl Record Sales Increased 40% in 2020

The optimistic data is also insightful for entrepreneurs who may be considering starting their own independent record shop. Or perhaps sellers of vintage items, who may want to consider adding highly sought-after records to their stock.

As Discogs notes in its ‘The State of Discogs 2020: End-of-Year Report’: This year has brought its fair share of challenges. At the beginning of 2020, we could not predict the global COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on small businesses. However, the data in the Discogs End-of-Year Report 2020 proves that music fans are resilient, active, and enthusiastic. The State of Discogs is looking good thanks to a thriving vinyl community.”

CDs and Cassettes Also in High Demand

As well as vinyl, sales of CDs increased in 2020, witnessing a 37.18% year-over-year growth, with almost 3.5 million CDs purchased in 2020. Even cassettes, which have reached retro status and appeal, were in high demand. Almost 282,800 cassettes were sold through the Discog’s Marketplace in 2020, a 33.33% increase over the previous year.

The report even showed the most in-demand musical genres in 2020. The best-selling releases of the five most popular genres in Discog’s database were rock, electronic, pop, jazz, and funk/soul. These genres accounted for more than 81% of all releases added to Discog user collections.

The report provides an optimistic snapshot for independent music sellers or vintage item vendors wanting to increase their stock with sellable, in-demand items.

Even during a year crippled by disruption that had a huge impact on merchants, physical music – particularly vinyl records – retain their desirability.

Image: Depositphotos

This article, "Nearly 12 Million Vinyl Records Sold in 2020" was first published on Small Business Trends