Vinyl lending library opens in London

A new vinyl-only library has opened its doors in London.

The Vinyl Library has been set up by DJs Sophie Austin and Elly Rendall and will operate on a not-for-profit basis, lending vinyl records donated by the public.

It costs a pound to join the library, with £10 monthly membership fee, Members will be able to take out five records at one time. Donating records will allow a limited free membership.

The library is run by volunteers and has already seen donations from as far afield as New Orleans.

“We were DJing UK garage sets and we wanted to build up our vinyl collection,” Austin told The Guardian. “We didn’t have the budget to buy a whole new collection, there’s no vinyl in libraries any more and we have quite eclectic tastes, so we thought: ‘Wouldn’t it be great to have a vinyl library?'”

Austin added that the exact way in which the library will work are still being established.

“We’ll be the guinea pigs,” Rendall said. “Finding out if people will run off with records or if there’s a way to stop that. Working out how much to charge for rental.

“We don’t have the answers yet because it’s new and there’s nothing to base it on. But we’ve already had a guy get in touch from Birmingham saying he wants to do this. And once the pattern is set, people in different places can run their own and we’ll help them set it up. Hopefully it’ll work. It’s exciting.”

The Vinyl Library is now open at Unit 1, Foulden Road, London N16 7UU, from 11am-9pm, Monday-Sunday

Source: Music Week