German record stores launch petition to fight DHL on rising vinyl shipping fees
nme.comMixmag, Andy Vas – owner of the German-based Yore Store – said: “There’s no way people will want to pay €20 for shipping on a €10 or €15 record.”Vas told the publication that international markets – the United States’ in particular – are crucial to the longevity of German record labels and stores.
He continued: “I’ve been doing this since 1998, and the US is our strongest market for selling records. No record shops will be able to survive without that, because we can’t survive just from walk-in customers.”Before the changes are made to Warenpost International, Dirk Borrmann – owner of the Cologne store Drake Records – has launched a Change.org petition to protest them.
In an statement, he wrote: “Many record sellers and record store owners in Germany fear that the number of our foreign [orders] will decrease, which could act as a final death blow for many retailers who have already struggled to remain afloat during the pandemic.”At the time of writing, the petition has received a little under 11,300 signatures, with a current goal of 15,000.
You can support the petition by signing it here.Late last year, artists and labels in the UK opened up about the “outrageous” impact and “spiralling costs” of sending music and merchandise to Europe in the wake of Brexit.
Read more on nme.com