The 5 Best Mobile Record Stores Around the World
Posted by House of Marley on Oct 14th 2022
Digging through crates of vinyl and stumbling upon a rare record or new music is a thrill that never gets old. But not everyone has a great brick and mortar record store nearby—that’s where mobile record stores come in.
Mobile records stores tour around their cities or countries to help music lovers build their record collections without traveling too far from home. It’s just another way the “vinyl revival" is inspiring more and more people to listen to vinyl records again.
From retro-fitted buses to vintage narrowboats, there’s an entire fleet of mobile record stores out there. Whether you’re traveling abroad or strolling up the block, keep your eyes peeled—there might be a mobile record store stopping near you. Keep reading to learn about a few of the world’s best mobile record shops.
Herb’s Mobile Record Store — New Zealand
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After managing independent record stores and DJing for years, Benjamin James decided to take his passion for vinyl on the road. His new venture, Herb’s Record Mobile Record Store, is taking him on an adventure across New Zealand.
Founded in 2021, Herb’s Mobile Record Store carries a curated selection of vinyl records, cassettes, CDs and other “bits and bobs” that range from retro Nintendo cartridges to hemp-scented perfume. If you have an eclectic taste, you’re in luck.You’ll find a treasure trove of indie, punk, modern jazz and more stashed in the truck.
Hunting down Herb’s Mobile Record Store feels like following a band across the country, tour date posters and all. You can spot the blue Mitsubishi truck all around New Zealand, from Auckland to Wellington (their base). The shop visits breweries, town squares, festivals or wherever you want it to pop up. That’s right, James lets his customers decide the truck’s next destination via Facebook.
Doktor Vinyl — Slovakia
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Doktor Vinyl evokes nostalgia. The mobile record shop—a charming vintage trailer that travels through Slovakia—has a vast collection that you might not expect from such a compact storefront. You'll find blues, classical, funk, soul, new wave, metal, hip-hop, pop and more.
Slovakian natives don’t have to travel far to find Doktor Vinyl. The team travels to music festivals, community events and eateries across the country. If you aren’t visiting Slovakia any time soon, you can still purchase records directly from their website.
Pyramid Music — United States
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Managed by Noura Gordon (a.k.a. Lady Marauder), Pyramid Music is a local treasure of Augusta, GA. On the off chance you don’t find a record to take home, you’ll certainly leave with a “Sho Nuff Good Cookie” melting in your mouth.
Many of us inherited our love of music from our parents, but few people have vinyl in their blood the way Lady Marauder does. In 1971, her mother founded the first black-owned record store in the south (the original brick-and-mortar Pyramid Music). Her father, a DJ known as Flash, hosted a popular radio show that aired from the shop. Lady Marauder took over the shop years later, carrying on the legacies of her hardworking parents.
Today, Pyramid Music is one of the premiere mobile record stores in the United States! When Lady Marauder isn’t live on the air—she followed in her father’s footsteps as well—she sets up shop around Augusta, selling vinyl to locals who want to build their collections (or indulge in one of her homemade cookies).
If you catch one of these “pop-up” appearances, expect to peruse a rich selection of classic funk, soul, R&B, and hip-hop. And if you stick around, you might be lucky enough to watch one of her impromptu DJ sets.
LePerco — France
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LePerco is a simple independent mobile record store based in Southern France, right? Au contraire! At LePerco, they don’t just sling vinyl—they also roast artisan coffee!
Founder Pierre-Marie Camper blends the best of two worlds. LePerco offers a unique “vinyl & coffee” experience that invites you to enjoy the nuances of both, combining coffee tastings with live DJ sets that you can enjoy while you shop.
LePerco, which primarily finds itself around the Occitania region of France, stocks both new and used records and CDs, specializing in jazz, world, electronic and francophone music. If you miss one of their vinyl and coffee events, you can buy records through their online store.
The Record Deck — London
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So far, we’ve talked about record stores that roll—but the Record Deck floats! The Record Deck is a boat that appears at festivals, canal markets and events that are positioned along waterways in the UK.
Owner Luke Gifford launched the Record Deck in 2014. Weighed down by his nine-to-five job as a librarian, he decided to take his life in a new direction. Though few people grow up dreaming of becoming a “dock-to-dock vinyl salesman”, he knew it was his ticket to a better lifestyle.
On board the Record Deck, you’ll find a vibrant selection of vinyl records and CDs. The shop is stocked with classics like KISS, The Beatles, Asia and ABBA. But music lovers who enjoy niche genres will find something too, as the shop has a wide range of avant garde and experimental music.
Glifford gets most of his stock from the people he meets on his travels around the UK. He told Long Live Vinyl, “People like the idea of their records being redistributed around the country on a boat. They’ll come to me because they want their records to end up in other places.”
Finding The Record Deck is its own reward. As you might have guessed, sometimes the shop can be hard to track down. We recommend keeping your eyes on their website for the latest updates or shopping their Discogs profile.
Honorable Mention: Swing-A-Ling Mobile Record Shack — Jamaica
Imagine, for a moment, that you’re touring across Jamaica in 1971. You hear a crescendo of sound rising from a side street, a fusion of jubilant reggae and the growl of an old engine. A hip little truck pulls up to the corner with speakers leaning off the sides. The roar of the engine dies down to a quiet purr—but the music never stops. It's the Swing-A-Ling Mobile Record Shack.
In the 70s, Swing-A-Ling was the pride and joy of Charlie Ace, one of Jamaica’s most popular DJs. Following his DJ career, he rode around Kingston and sold vinyl records out of an old Morris van. When the van pulled up, music lovers would purchase the hottest records from the Swing-A-Ling record label.
Swing-A-Ling isn’t rolling through Jamaican streets anymore, but you can still enjoy Charlie Ace’s music today. In addition to his DJ career, he starred in many different groups, including Ace & The Inswings, Ace All Stars, and Ace and The Professional. These groups released several vinyl singles that you can find on Discogs.
What Goes Around, Comes Around
Mobile record shops offer a unique crate-digging experience that we highly recommend. To get the best sound, upgrade your setup with House of Marley Stir It Up Turntables and premium Bluetooth speakers.
