Why is rough trade mail order so slow?

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when the shop is so good, dammit!

― Bill, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I was getting quite good at not using the internet but now i'm back here. bugger.

― Bill, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

use chunkyrecords.com instead. very prompt

― gareth, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

it's very inconsistent. The first cd I ordered from it (Trembling Blue Stars' "Lips that Taste of Tears", as I recall) took just 2 days. My most recent acquisition took about 22 (new Sodastream album).

Is this not typical of all mail/internet ordering? This is the point when I start chanting "allow 28 days for delivery", mantra-like.....

― MarkH, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Normans Records are ACE ACE ACE i use them loads and they are always most prompt and send you friendly little notes.

― katie, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I normally use action records and opalmusic who both take about 3-4 days but sometimes rough trade has stuff/has it cheaper so I use them. been waiting since the 4th november and the two other times it was 20+ days I believe. it seems they take longer than most places who are actually quite quick regardless, but they do admittedly have the '28 days' getout thingy.
Incidentally, think I answered my own question in the question, it's a small shop, and it's good reputation probably slows it down. yes, it all makes sense now...

― Bill, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

action records are EVIL.

― katie, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

and weren't they celebrating their 25th anniversary this year, leading to greater interest in the shop and site and their own celebrations slowing the order process down? I believe there was a note on one of their e-mails (giving details of the month's releases) to this effect.

― MarkH, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

EXPLAIN THIS TO ME Katie, Action was my LOCAL INDIE RECORD SHOP back in Preston (and boy did I support it)! And they were all absolutely WUVVLY! Except the infinite shame of finding one other person with a Belle & Sebastian tshirt around the time of the Summer EPs and then going back the next day and finding him in a SLEEPER tshirt! Argh! But I would have married him!!! Also I have a friend who ALWAYS uses Action for overseas mail order and has nevah evah had any evilness. It wuz waaaay better than Roosters urgh the panic and the horror.

― Sarah, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Action Records stole a piece of property from some friends of mine and still have not given it back, and that is all i will say on the matter.

― katie, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Action, Sister Ray and Rough Trade all shit. chunky is best british, norman is good too. othermusic.com very good because exchange rate means cheaper than buying in this country (even with p&p added on)

― gareth, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Eessh. That don't sound like the chaps at Action, I must say.

― Sarah, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

i liv in LAHRNDAN so don't need no poxy mail order can go to ruff trade and judi giv me records for nuffink cos she say boy carlin pay our overheads stuf e's bort from us over year and then go frow brix thru windoz of minus zero but wood do if they had windoz but dont coz they are pretentious old prannies tom cox go there honis john also pretenzious giles peterson shit jaz selection shit better when it woz in CAHMDEN TAHN before ryththym recordz replaced.

― salt o' the earth, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Funny someone should mention this, just yesterday a CD arrived from Rough Trade which had been on order since JUNE! Sister Ray still haven't delivered me stuff I ordered in FEBRUARY! Bollocks to them, sez I, use Amazon.

― DG, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

rough trade is spotty, usually it takes a week to get here but sometimes months. action has always been good though if they don't have something you order they don't bother to let you know it is out of stock. other music is expensive even for americans i am not sure how it is inexpensive for europeans? the best american mail order places for me are tweekitten, claire, darla but not parasol who charge something like 4.50 for shipping whereas the other places offer things like media mail. opal music is super cool.

― keith, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Oh yeah, Sister Ray is shite, took a few months because it was out of stock even though it would have been real easy to get quickly. amazon is alright, actually fairly wide selection (don't know how easily they get the obscure stuff in, though) but they don't add vat and whopping p+p on the prices shown. bastards. useful for xmas shopping, mind.

― Bill, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Sister Ray the shop is lovely though! They all know me because of the SF posters and occasionally give random discounts! The staff are ace.

― Paul Strange, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I use Tweekitten! Got CD's from California within 10 days of ordering! yay! But I haven't bought anything mailorder for quite a while.

― james, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I could never buy anything from a shop called Tweekitten. Don't they think these things through?

― Nick, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Spooky, my Lollies 7" and other stuff from Rough Trade arrived this morning (ordered weekend after gig (= 3 weekZor?) having not found it local indie store, and not having time to look in another).

Now can someone lend me a record player?

― Graham, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I thought this would be a pervy thread. DAMN. ;-)

― helen fordsdale, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

i was with oyu helen, expecting crusty udnerwear threads, but no...jus t a little record shopping....

― geoff, Friday, 23 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I prefer my smuggo's trick of getting copies of things sent to me directly through nefarious means. Yay!

― Ned Raggett, Saturday, 24 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

has anyone used Pelican Neck in Manchester?

― gareth, Sunday, 25 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I've used Pelicanneck for a small order a while ago and they were ok. No online credit card ordering, though, so not as convenient. I'll probably use them again as soon as Lackluster's new 12" appears on their new release lists because they have two older items which are hard to find and they seem to be the only online UK record shop to list both of them. (I should really not be spending this much money on records, since for the first half of next year I'll be renting accommodation but having no income at all.)

Last time I mail-ordered stuff from Sister Ray I ordered Les Savy Fav's "Rome Written Upside Down" for 6 quid and they sent me their new full-price album instead by mistake. This was a good thing, since I didn't have either. I didn't point out their mistake largely because I'm evil, though at the time I told myself it was because they'd taken a while to send stuff out and some of it wasn't in stock and some of it was sent out three weeks later.

Action used to be great but seem to have got a lot slower at sending stuff out recently. Chunky look pretty nice but I haven't used them because when they started they spammed me with a whole load of unsolicited weekly update lists as 100k html emails (I hadn't used them or anything, they got my address off a newsgroup), which I suppose isn't a big deal really but I thought was kind of rude. I may have to to get one of the hard to find things mentioned above, though.

― Rebecca, Sunday, 25 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Pelicanneck = fabulous, at least the shop is. They're all super nice and carry a lot of stuff that nowhere else does. Mmm I spent ages in there last trip to Manchester (also I lost all my friends and found them in the caff having tea and jacket potatoes, they said that I looked like I was in there for duration) so I supose I would recommend. I don't particularly like mail ordering records...

― Sarah, Sunday, 25 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

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