Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Tom Maher. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Tom, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been the best thing you’ve ever seen (or done yourself) to show a customer that you appreciate them?
First of all is our loyalty card: We offer $20 off after 10 purchases of $10 or more. Most times, particularly if they’re walking out with upwards of $100 in merchandise or more, we will scratch off several decals because it means that much that they continue to support us. Over time, more and more people have been taking advantage of this deal.
Oftentimes, I’ll have something sitting around just to give away–a poster or a 7″ or a 2lp album that only has one lp. I save those to give away to customers. For instance, we have Punk Rock Mystery Bags. I’ll float one of those to a repeat customer to show appreciation.
Conversation, too, is very important and one of the things I most appreciate about being a record store owner. I think many people come back because I’m not an arrogant a**hole. I engage them, listen to them and talk to them. I learn from them. They come back because we have such a good rapport.
Ultimately, I do all I can to keep customers coming back and enjoy doing it. Building community is part of our overall mission.
Tom, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’ve been a record collector since grade-school. I’ve loved music so much so that I model my life after it. There is nothing outside of running my store that I’d rather do. Music takes the cake as far as what I value in my life.
It honestly all started where I grew up–Omaha, Nebraska. There were a couple of favorite record stores I used to hit up as I matured. The first one turned me on to hardcore punk. The cashier knew me through my brother (who was also instrumental to my musical journey). I remember him being so kind to me and being the one to turn me on to new stuff! I felt included in that scene for many years.
Later on, another store popped up which was really my inspiration to start doing this myself. It was a 3- or 4-story building. The top floor was all about local art and artists. The middle two floors were a book store and the bottom level was the record store. The building was owned by some of the most unique characters you could imagine. They would congregate on the main floor, smoke cigarettes, drink free coffee and talk philosophy. The record store itself–and why it probably meant so much to me–was because at that juncture in my life (this would be my college years) I was really experimenting with what I was listening to. My brother was no longer the director of my appreciation for music. I was going out alone on my own and approaching my music interests with a sense of adventure. Indeed, I even regularly plucked albums from a section that was called “Experimental”!
Since then, I’ve kept up with that spirit of adventure with what I do with my store.
What problems do I help solve for my customers? I point many of them in a direction. “If you’re into this, you’ll like that.” I dig deep when I put in an order. Sure, I go for some stuff that people know, but my job, as I see it, is to bring some of these smaller groups to my customers attention. I also send out an email when new stuff comes in stock and I always add some kind of a descriptor to help them understand what we’ve got.
I do have a focus, but I stray from that a lot. I’m not necessarily looking to sell genre music. Indeed, the stuff I get most excited about are the things that go beyond genre. That said, I have found myself focusing a lot on shoegaze, psychedelic rock (both old and new) and library music.
Also, on Thursdays, at the shop, I provide a free record-cleaning service using my “Spin-Clean”. If someone needs help setting up their home stereo, I can do that as well. I suppose that’s two more ways I help solve customer problems.
As far as my most proud moments–those come from time to time. Last week, I had this customer come in and look around with his girlfriend. After about 15 minutes, he whispered to his gf, “This place is kind of awesome!” That kinda stuff really floats my boat–that and introducing customers to stuff that they end up really enjoying.
How did you build your audience on social media?
I am on Instagram, Facebook and have a website. I’m also on TikTok now, but I haven’t used it yet. I generally make at least one post every day I’m open. I also find that if I enjoy doing it, generally that enjoyment becomes contagious. I’m not only building a record store, I’m fostering a greater musical community. Sometimes I like to challenge my followers by asking a music-related question. Everyone wants to be heard, so it feels good when other people get a chance to weigh in on a topic. Other than that, I often post a “Kismet Pick of the Day”, a little known factoid, new arrivals, sales, concerts and other events, or what I am currently playing in the shop.
For those about to build their SM presence, I’d just say enjoy the process. Do you enjoy engaging with other people about your chosen field? Good, do it like that.
Do you sell on your site, or do you use a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc?
I do sell an awful lot on Discogs. It’s not great. I’d rather be with customers in the flesh. On a site like Discogs, people are only buying what they want, specifically. Inside a store, they can get turned on to so much more stuff. Indeed, 80% of all record store sales are impulse purchases. Not only that, but i (and the customer) lose money on the transaction for the stuff that is done through a site like Discogs. Online is a kind of sterile environment, while a brick and mortar has energy and color. Obviously, the main pros for a thing like Discogs is a worldwide audience.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kismetrecordsstl.com
- Instagram: @kismet_records
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tomkismet
- Other: Discogs:discogs.com/user/exvegan6697
Depop:
depop.com/kismetrecords