Newbury's Empire of Pop

With the advent of the digital age, it comes as little surprise that the record industry is in dire straits, with music retailers experiencing a significant drop in sales. Thus, an independent music retailer such as Newbury Comics is a bit of an oddity. Twenty-nine years after the store opened on Newbury Street in Boston, the business has expanded to 27 locations in five states - 19 in Massachusetts alone. As its name implies, the chain originally specialized in selling comic books; however, its focus has since shifted toward music and pop-culture goods.

Why is Newbury Comics still relevant, especially given the demise of other nearby music vendors such as Virgin and Tower Records? "Newbury Comics is an entertaining, interesting, and informative place to shop for music that is more than just background. It's shopping as a form of entertainment, where you can find random things you would never expect to see and a lot of stuff you didn't know you wanted," said Chief Operating Officer Duncan Brown said,

The store emphasizes youth interests and alternative culture, which is reflected in its aim to sell products that are just outside the norm, whether it be a hard-to-find album by an underground band, a rare poster, or an uncommon tchotchke. Though the store may appeal to teens looking to get in on the new "it" band, the target audience ranges from 15-50, including just about anyone interested in discovering new artists and genres. Newbury Comics functions as a medium for alternatively minded individuals to satisfy their hunger for the esoteric and to find people with similar interests, said Brown. He calls Newbury Comics "a cultural nexus for people who view themselves as being slightly outside the mainstream and seek fellow members of their tribes, whether they are Aerosmith lovers, Spoon fans, or Johnny Depp poster fanatics."

Despite the chain's clear emphasis on music-oriented items, it still sells a variety of other unusual products that collectors and hobbyists can appreciate: comic books, rare DVDs, Red Sox action figures, Yiddish magnetic poetry kits, Mr. T key chains, and Office Space bobbleheads. "People know that they can walk once a month or even [once] a week and find new and unusual things they won't see in Wal-Mart or Target," said Duncan. The rising popularity of such treasures as well as the more underground genres of music that Newbury Comics carries have helped the franchise to carve out a unique niche for itself and retain its relevance in spite of the ever-diminishing market for music. To further distinguish itself from other chains, Newbury Comics emphasizes customer discounts and deals that are posted on its Web site (www.newburycomics.com) and gives away bonus gifts with the purchase of some of their new CDs.

If you find yourself in town looking for an interesting place to shop, something worthwhile to do, or in need of a last-minute Halloween costume (yep, they have those too), put Newbury Comics on your list of destinations.