NORTHAMPTON, MA (WGGB/WSHM) – With an ever-changing retail landscape out in Boston, two record shop owners moved their store to Hampshire County after more than a decade out east.
Western Mass News spoke with one owner of Deep Thoughts Record Shop on Market Street to learn what inspired her to reset in Northampton. After nearly 12 years in Boston, Alaina Stamatis and Nick Williams were eager to return to the Pioneer Valley. ”Staring down another winter of making that commute, that was a major motivating factor just being closer to home,” explained Stamatis, co-owner of Deep Thoughts Record Shop. And closer to home is where Stamatis, along with her husband, Williams, brought Deep Thoughts Record Shop.
With Boston’s changing retail landscape and the pressure of raising a child, they relocated to Northampton in November. While Stamatis reflects on her positive experiences in Boston, she says this move was only a matter of time. ”I think we were always scheming to move to Northampton, and we always just thought that was the best place to be. Boston was kind to us, and we had a wonderful community around our shop, but overall this is a better place for us,” Stamatis said. Walking into one of the only record shops in Northampton, you’re instantly greeted by the sounds emitting from the store’s record player. There’s an endless selection of CDs and vinyls of many genres that span across several decades.
Owning a record shop isn’t easy and can be tiring, but creating a hub for a community to come together and enjoy music is what inspires Stamatis to keep going. ”The Northampton folk are very creative,” she told us adding, “To have those conversations with the community about different sharing, and them bringing suggestions to us learning about music we didn’t know about, it’s just enlightenment on all ends.”And even though Deep Thoughts moved across the state, that doesn’t stop the customers out east from making the journey down the Pike.”We’ve had so many people actually come in and say ‘I used to live in Jamaica Plains and now I live in Northampton so you’re close to me again!”, which is amazing because a lot of the people who were sad we were leaving I said ‘maybe you want to move as well if you like us, you might love Northampton,” noted Stamatis. Stamatis and Williams say they want to keep their store open for as long as possible.
If you would like to stop by, you can visit 5 Market St. in Northampton.
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