Mississippi record store enlists student influencers to help business
Mississippi record store enlists student influencers to help business
Consumer spending surged in January to its biggest increase in over two years, aided by wage gains. January is traditionally a slow month for Phillip Rollins, the owner of Offbeat, a record and comic book store in Jackson, Mississippi. But in February, Rollins has seen sales rise as customers searched for “that record” for Valentine’s Day gifts.
Rollins is focusing on a new strategy for his business: attracting more college students to the shop by offering a place for them to hang out and be part of a community.
“There’s a big disconnect between college students and businesses,” Rollins said, “and a lot of college students really think there’s nothing to do or the city has nothing to offer, which isn’t true at all.”
So Rollins has turned to college students for help. He’s enlisted a group of students to act as influencers for the shop. They bring their friends around and advertise events via social media.
“We started doing events again, to help drive customers to come into the shop more,” Rollins added. “And [we have] been working with record labels for artists such as Paramore and the Gorillaz to host listening and album release events.”
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