Arts
Tony the record man
DAVID DUCHARME
Spring 2008 |
album, It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll. And artists such as David Bowie, Frank Zappa, Little Feat and Fleetwood Mac were adding to impressive musical portfolios with acclaimed releases.
It was 1974.
Tony Anselmo had always had a passion for music. And in the spring of 1974, he saw an opportunity he couldn’t pass up.
At the time, a couple of his friends in Toronto were running a business, selling LPs out of a bus. He worked as their buyer for a few months. And when they moved their operation into a mall, Anselmo hopped on his chance…literally.
“I asked them what they were doing with the bus,” Anselmo said. “And they said, ‘nothing’. I didn’t like Toronto much, so the next thing I knew, I was driving the bus, and the idea, back to Sudbury.”
And with that, Records on Wheels was born.
Anselmo started small, selling vinyl from the bus and slowly building a modest clientele. In November 1974, he moved into his first brick and mortar location – on the second floor of a retail complex on Elm St. in downtown Sudbury.
“It was called ‘The Mall’,” Anselmo joked. “I used to say you needed a search warrant to find that place.”
After more than three decades, he is one of Sudbury’s (and perhaps Canada’s) most enduring independent music retailers.
The threat of becoming obsolete is very real for record stores everywhere. Sam the Record Man closed its Toronto flagship store in May 2007. The Canadian record chain Music World went bankrupt while international record retailer HMV with 116 stores in Canada has had to lower CD prices and diversify stock to include DVDs and video games in order to remain competitive.
It has never been easy for Anselmo. Business was hardly overwhelming when he opened his shop. But he stayed patient, holding firm to a simple philosophy.
“Every time things looked bad, I would always think ‘there’s always tomorrow’,” Anselmo said. “Sometimes you have to tighten your belt and believe things will be better.”
It’s a phrase he uttered a lot in those early days.
“In 1978…and into 1979…we had a nine-month strike and a seven-month shutdown at Inco. And we fought through that. It got to the point that suppliers were phoning and saying, ‘you’re past due 30 days on that invoice’. Theywere the two hardest years of my life.”
Anselmo said the ‘boom-bust’ economic cycles that go with living in Sudbury have posed challenges over the years. But never once has he considered closing his doors.
“A lot of people just throw their hands up and pack it in when things get rough,” Anselmo said. “Or they may operate with the idea that, ‘well … there’s no business today, so I think I’ll close up and go have a beer.’ I don’t do that.”
Records on Wheels is a fixture on the corner of Elm and Durham in downtown Sudbury.
“Growth has always been little baby steps. We grew a little bit every time we moved.”
Anselmo said that is the key to his longevity – slow, steady growth and reasonable goals. But there are always new challenges.
Over recent years, the biggest has been the rise of online music sharing.
“Our industry is one that has been in dire straights. Everything that has transpired in our industry…downloading, e-commerce…has affected us. But it hasn’t hurt us as much as those who didn’t have that good solid base of customers. That’s why we’re still around.”
Perhaps the biggest reason Records On Wheels carries on is Anselmo’s unwavering product and service philosophies.
“We’re a record store. Plain and simple. And if we don’t have what you’re looking for, we will get it for you.”
Anselmo has stayed true to his old school roots. In addition to a huge selection of both wide release and hard-to-find CDs, Records on Wheels offers the city’s only real rare vinyl selection.
Anselmo’s business plan has always been and will continue to be the same. He carries what people want and can’t find at other record shops.
“If you’re interested in music or you’re a serious music buyer, this is where you are going to come.”
And through both high times and lean years in Sudbury, that’s exactly what music lovers have continued to do.
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