Today we’d like to introduce you to Jenkins Boyd.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Jenkins. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I and my father started the store in 2006 a few months after I graduated high school with a couple of thousand records and CDs we had from doing record conventions for several years. Like any small business we struggled for the first couple of years, we were so broke we didn’t even have a sign for the first year, haha. The first location was about 2000 square feet, after a few years, we outgrew the space and decided to move to Montgomery street near the museum district (only about a mile from our current location). That location was roughly 3000 square feet of retail space but we had a couple of acres of property with several storage buildings in the back so it was a major upgrade from our previous spot. We were there for around three years and then someone bought the property we were leasing and we had to move again.
We needed even more floor space at this point, so we moved out to the west side off of Camp Bowie West in a building that was 5000 sf or so and were there for six years. About two years ago I decided I wanted to retool my business strategy so we moved to our current space of 10,000 sf and dropped in around 35 consignment spaces for vintage dealers to come sell their product. Kind of like an antique mall but more focused on vintage clothing, pop culture memorabilia, and interesting artifacts. We now have around 5000 sf of record store and 5000 sf of vintage consignment spaces. Around 40,000 LPs on the floor (god knows how many are yet to be processed, probably another 20,000 or so), around 20,000 45s, 8000 CDs, 1000 cassettes, and a couple of hundred posters. It takes us a little longer to get things processed as unlike most other stores everything is cleaned and sleeved before it goes out for maximum protection from wear and tear. We also have a party at least once a month to showcase local bands where we provide free beer and other freshments. Our next scheduled show is an album release party for the Strays out of Denton (awesome cosmic sludge) on October 19th who will be accompanied by a couple of other bands that have yet to be named.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Smooth road? I’d say closer to navigating a mountain bike trail on a unicycle, haha. It’s not a bad thing as we’ve grown as a business and learned from the plentiful mistakes I’ve made over the years. A lot of it was just logistical stuff, daily operations that cost us money and time that could have been easily avoided but I didn’t know how at the time. Luckily, for us, we’ve had an awesome and very loyal customer base that has kept us afloat through the tough times.
Please tell us about Doc’s Records and Vintage.
I wouldn’t say we specialize in anything, in particular, I like to carry a little bit of everything, kind of a one-stop-shop for vinyl enthusiasts. Our largest selection is definitely classic rock but we also have a healthy selection of punk, indie rock, metal, country, R&B, jazz, rap, classical, new releases, reggae, soundtracks, oldies, male/female vocals, etc. I’m probably proudest of our selection and customer service, we have a very friendly staff and are always happy to help find whatever you need and if we don’t have it in stock we are happy to help run it down for you. I think our attention to detail sets us apart from others, everything is sleeved and conservatively graded for customer convenience. We also pride ourselves on honesty and integrity when it comes to buying records, I don’t believe anyone should be taken advantage of because of their ignorance on a subject. I always pay very well for good stock and I get a ton of referrals because of it.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Christmas morning, when I was around 10, my brother came running out of his room tripped and face planted in the middle of the hallway. Best Christmas present ever. Thank you, Santa.
Pricing:
- Most of the LP stock ranges from $5-$25 but we have plenty of rare records that are more expensive
- Discount LPs are $1-$4 but we have 50% off, $1, and $.50 sales somewhat regularly
- 45s are mostly in the $2-$10 range but we also have plenty of rare 45s that are much more expensive
- CDs are $5-$10, most are $5.98
- Cassettes are typically $2.98-$4.98
- Vintage clothing is set by the dealer but everything is reasonably priced and we have a lot of killer stock
Contact Info:
- Address: Doc’s Records
2628 Weisenberger st
Fort Worth, TX 76107 - Website: http://www.docsrecordsandvintage.com/
- Phone: 8177325455
- Email: docsrecordsandvintage@yahoo.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/docs_records
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/docsrecords
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/DocsRecords
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