Haven't been in there in years, but it used to part of my record store crawl when I was younger. Shame.
http://www.sbpost.ie/news/ireland/the-vinyl-curtain-for-iconic-store-58308.html
The founder of the iconic Borderline Records music shop in Temple Bar is closing his doors after more than 20 years in business.
Derek Larkin opened Borderline in 1991 after buying a 35-year lease before the regeneration of Temple Bar was announced. Now, Larkin is shutting up shop for family reasons, and planning to sub-let the lease on the bright yellow building in the heart of the tourist area.
‘‘I adopted a child earlier this year and I have a baby on the way, and my duty is to my family. When I leave the house in the morning, it has to be to make a living for them, not to stand around talking about Bob Dylan to someone who is only willing to pay €12 for an album," said Larkin.
He said that, though the music shop business had changed over the years, there was still a living to be made by those who were good at what they did.
‘‘If I didn’t have my three children, then I could have a pretty good lifestyle from the shop, but now it’s time to look after my family," he said.
However, Borderline will continue to have a presence in Temple Bar, as Larkin intends to keep his stall at the Saturday market in the square.
Larkin travelled all over the world collecting rare albums and CDs for sale in the shop and believes this was what set him apart from other independent stores.
‘‘If I just sat in the record shop and didn’t set myself apart from the competition, I would have been ruined."
He started going to England in 1982 to buy records, and opened a stall on Liffey Street two years later to sell them. In 1986, he opened a shop in the Abbey Mall before opening in Temple Bar in 1991, keeping both shops running for two years before concentrating on the latter.
‘‘The lease was cheap and it was always a good location, even before the regeneration," he said.
Larkin said that, during the 1980s, record companies tried to kill vinyl – which, ironically, led to more modern albums such as Morrissey’s Vauxhall And I and U2’s Achtung Baby, Zooropa and Pop becoming rarer than older records, as so few vinyl copies were released.
He said that, though there would always be a market for vinyl, CDs had died a death as a result of downloading.
Larkin said that rents had never been an issue for him and that he had a good business relationship with his landlord. However, rates and Vat were crippling small businesses.
‘‘There is all this talk about banks not helping out small businesses, but they never did, even in the good times," he said.
‘‘Although I support the current government, it needs to look at what it can do to cut the costs for businesses. I have to pay out €250 (in rates) to the government before I make any money or even say hello to a customer."
He said Temple Bar had become a transient area and was not the right location for a record shop any more, but added that he believed the spot would be perfect for some other tourist-related business.
‘‘I’m not one of those retailers who are going to walk away. I’ll reinvent myself and I’ll be back. I already have a few ideas which are all music-related, but I won’t be opening another record shop."
http://www.sbpost.ie/news/ireland/the-vinyl-curtain-for-iconic-store-58308.html
The founder of the iconic Borderline Records music shop in Temple Bar is closing his doors after more than 20 years in business.
Derek Larkin opened Borderline in 1991 after buying a 35-year lease before the regeneration of Temple Bar was announced. Now, Larkin is shutting up shop for family reasons, and planning to sub-let the lease on the bright yellow building in the heart of the tourist area.
‘‘I adopted a child earlier this year and I have a baby on the way, and my duty is to my family. When I leave the house in the morning, it has to be to make a living for them, not to stand around talking about Bob Dylan to someone who is only willing to pay €12 for an album," said Larkin.
He said that, though the music shop business had changed over the years, there was still a living to be made by those who were good at what they did.
‘‘If I didn’t have my three children, then I could have a pretty good lifestyle from the shop, but now it’s time to look after my family," he said.
However, Borderline will continue to have a presence in Temple Bar, as Larkin intends to keep his stall at the Saturday market in the square.
Larkin travelled all over the world collecting rare albums and CDs for sale in the shop and believes this was what set him apart from other independent stores.
‘‘If I just sat in the record shop and didn’t set myself apart from the competition, I would have been ruined."
He started going to England in 1982 to buy records, and opened a stall on Liffey Street two years later to sell them. In 1986, he opened a shop in the Abbey Mall before opening in Temple Bar in 1991, keeping both shops running for two years before concentrating on the latter.
‘‘The lease was cheap and it was always a good location, even before the regeneration," he said.
Larkin said that, during the 1980s, record companies tried to kill vinyl – which, ironically, led to more modern albums such as Morrissey’s Vauxhall And I and U2’s Achtung Baby, Zooropa and Pop becoming rarer than older records, as so few vinyl copies were released.
He said that, though there would always be a market for vinyl, CDs had died a death as a result of downloading.
Larkin said that rents had never been an issue for him and that he had a good business relationship with his landlord. However, rates and Vat were crippling small businesses.
‘‘There is all this talk about banks not helping out small businesses, but they never did, even in the good times," he said.
‘‘Although I support the current government, it needs to look at what it can do to cut the costs for businesses. I have to pay out €250 (in rates) to the government before I make any money or even say hello to a customer."
He said Temple Bar had become a transient area and was not the right location for a record shop any more, but added that he believed the spot would be perfect for some other tourist-related business.
‘‘I’m not one of those retailers who are going to walk away. I’ll reinvent myself and I’ll be back. I already have a few ideas which are all music-related, but I won’t be opening another record shop."
