The brisk business at Mars Tapes is part of a wider trend of people buying and fixing old music equipment.
Between 2020 and 2024, Google searches for “CD player repair near me” increased by 23%, while “Audio equipment repair near me” grew by 91%, according to trend data sourced by software firm SEMRush.
A report from Statista, external forecasts that the global electronics repair service market is expected to double in size from $122bn (£96bn) in 2021 to $240bn (£190bn) in 2033.
So why are some music lovers looking for alternatives to digital music services?
Perhaps modern Bluetooth speakers, earbuds and headphones lack the character of older equipment.
“The market is saturated with devices that offer low price and convenience, but provide an impersonal, sterile experience,” says Sarah Dodge, strategic design manager at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.
“When you repair an item, you feel more attachment to it, so people may be drawn to a more empowering and rewarding ownership experience.”
For Mark Maher, fixing electrical equipment was a hobby, but soaring demand saw him quit his job as a manager for a multinational power transmission equipment business in September to focus on it full time.
In fact, demand “got so out of hand” Mr Maher has closed the contact section of his website.
“There’s absolutely a growing trend in repairing vintage audio equipment,” says Mr Maher from his business Perton Electronics in the West Midlands.
“People are wanting to restore all sorts, like Sony Walkmans, radio tape decks, and portable CD players they had and loved as teenagers. There’s a lot of nostalgia there.”
He says people are restoring old audio gear they’ve bought on platforms such as Ebay. “Things were certainly built better back then, and are much more repairable than the latest equipment.”
He thinks he’s also in demand as “there’s a genuine shortage of people that can repair things,” he says.
Mr Maher also runs a YouTube channel, Mend it Mark, which has almost 100,000 subscribers.
Credit: Source link
