Tesco revives…but only on vinyl

Tesco boss Dave Lewis may not have had much to shout about after his first year in the job but music fans certainly will – quite literally – after the supermarket giant revealed it is to reprise vinyl sales, with Iron Maiden leading the charge.
It is believed that the British band, best known for titles such as Run to the Hills and The Number of the Beast, will become the first act to ever have vinyl sold through Tesco.
The supermarket only entered the music retail market in the Nineties, when CDs had already knocked vinyl from the number one spot.
Iron Maiden’s new album ‘The Book of Souls’ will be available to buy in 55 of Tesco’s largest stores from Friday (September 4).
Tesco music buyer Michael Mulligan said that the move was “a logical step” as the supermarket had started selling record decks in its largest stores.
He added: “Initial sales are very encouraging so giving our customers some new vinyl to play on those decks seems like the logical next step. And there can be no better way to launch this trial than working with one of rock music’s most iconic bands and their eagerly anticipated new album.
“We are anticipating demand for The Book Of Souls to be high as Iron Maiden’s last album was the band’s most successful to date, reaching number one in 28 countries including the UK. If this trial is a success then we would consider selling more vinyl albums before the end of the year.”
It is not known whether Lewis is a headbanger, a soul boy or an ageing punk. One thing is for certain, though, he will need more than a few records to turn the supermarket around.
While vinyl sales grew 52% last year to 9.2 million they are still dwarfed by digital albums on 117.6 million and streaming, which soared 54% to 164 billion.