All signs seem to be pointing in ominous directions for the immediate future of our country and our world (no matter what your political bent is), but while I lead our family business through its trials and tribulations, my mind grabs for an optimistic view. In a world like this, what else can you do? And when I focus in on the small sphere of Wax Trax, things are feeling pretty good.
Wax Trax is on the up and up. We are selling more records and tapes than we have at any time since the heyday of records and tapes back in the 1980s, and the corner store is buzzing with good energy every weekend. A few highlights of 2024:
- With our “mobile mini-shop” we traveled to 27 events in 2024, including 7 “Wax Trax Attacks” events where we brought our DJ gear and the full Wax Trax vibe to breweries and events.
- We had 28 in-store events in our shops, including performances, DJs, listening parties, and meet & greets with Illenium and Modern English.
- We also made several physical improvements to our mothership shop at 13th Avenue, including more room for vinyl, an improved CD department and a brand new stereo department that YES, does have replacement styli (aka needles) and cartridges.
- Last but not least, 2024 was the first year since the late 90s where we’ve had more than one shop, and now we have three – or 2.5 really – with our new mini-shop over at Stanley Marketplace.
You may wonder what the hell we’re up to with all of this activity.
Well, our core motivation is keeping Wax Trax around for another 50 years, and by bringing more Wax Trax to the Queen City of the Plains we help build a stronger foundation for that longevity. As a second generation owner of Wax Trax, I feel a bit like that guy in “A Quest for Fire” – trying to keep a little bit of coal smoldering to light the next life-providing fire. And having a few fires going (one out in Aurora for instance) is definitely a way to fail-safe that survival.
What that fire is for Wax Trax is hard to pin down. It has a life of its own, but I like to think of it as a music library crossed with a community center for all who love and/or make music. It definitely feels like a good thing to create more of. Also, with our growth we’ve been able to hire more creative people who deserve great jobs, and when you bring a bunch of creative people together, good and weird things can happen. Similarly, when you convene folks around anything, including your local record shop, it can influence small changes. Sometimes really small changes, but still progress nonetheless.
For instance, we’ve got a new and improved loading zone, the first of a host of basic parking improvements we (and all of our neighboring businesses) asked the city for back in Oct. 2023. The loading zone is effective “at all times” instead of “8am-6pm.” (Okay, so a year and a half for a few signage changes isn’t a rapid pace of change for the City of Denver (or is it?), but let me tell you, it was glorious to be able to pull into it at 8pm to load in some records last Saturday so a big thank you to Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure.) It’ll make life easier for all the people who sell us records (and Kilgore’s books), for all the mail, UPS and Fed Ex drivers, and even Bezos’s evil empire. Please don’t park in it to shop–stretch your legs and walk a little!
Also, while It is still unclear if Wax Trax will be able to continue its 46-year tradition of holding shows outside the store under a proposed revision of the noise ordinance (which the city just released during our busiest time of the year – we’ll write about that soon), your support in that effort has helped us form better relationships with a few city councilors and the mayor. We’ll see how that turns out.
We’re looking forward to that and other changes we can bring in 2025, both in our neighborhoods and in the shops, as we dig through (literally) our 46-years of history. We’re poised to bring our mobile mini-shop to even more parts of the city and the state (attacking with our DJs as much as possible) starting in February or so. We’ll also host even more great community events in our stores and neighborhoods than we did last year. We’re also cooking up a few new ideas to connect you with your favorite artists as well as Denver’s booming local music scene. As always, we’ll also be fine tuning and expanding the widest selection of cool records in town.
Thank you Denverites, Aurorans, and readers and patrons out in the plains, the hills, and beyond, for your continued support for our store, our family, and our incredible staff!
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