AHomeForTinyVinylShop

Hello. I'm Ty Cumbie, owner of Tiny Vinyl Shop. For the past four years I've been selling a curated selection of quality vinyl records Sundays at  Dupont Little Flea Market, 19th & Q Streets. Over this time I've grown my community of regular buyers, building a unique brand and a reputation for offering consistently great collections. One of the most common questions I'm asked is, "where is your brick and mortar shop?" The answer so far has always been, "I don't have one... yet."

 

Having a brick and mortar shop will allow me to do more of what I love: seeking out and bringing great music on vinyl to my customers. I am energized by sharing music, and a brick and mortar shop will allow me to do that more. But, with this benefit will come drastically increased overhead.

 

While I'm still searching for TVS's "forever home," I'm excited to announce that I've entered a short term "popup" agreement with the landlord of the old City Bikes space on Champlain Street at the corner of Euclid in the heart of Adams Morgan! TVS will be sharing this space with a wonderful small biz called Upshift, which repairs bikes and conducts programs for cyclists. While we are optimistic sales will make this venture at least sustainable, and preferably more than that, we could very much use your help covering some of the start-up costs. The space won't require major improvements, but there are a number of one-time expenses required to get this new store up and running.

 

With your help, I hope to realize my dream of a unique and vital hub for vinyl music lovers in the heart of the city, a place that will be much more than a record shop. We hope to present frequent live performances, art shows and other cultural events, and we aim to be a part of DC's culture for as long as possible. And, of course, we aim to keep offering one of the finest selections in the region. 

 

Why we need money: We will need to purchase a number of tables and crates, curtains for the windows, and to construct a divider between the bike and record shops. There are new cards and price stickers and record sleeves and that sort of thing. There's mandatory insurance and an alarm system. 

What you'll get back: All donations will be acknowledged (if desired) in print. $25-75 gets you a Mystery Pack of curated vinyl records. Anything $100 over gets a TVS T-shirt featuring the iconic "Mr. Raspberry" artwork by Chicago artist Blake Jones. Donations above $500 gets the TVS "Mr. Raspberry" T-shirt and $50 store credit. And you get back the joy of supporting vinyl culture in our city!