- April 7, 2025
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When he found a space in an old plaza near Downtown Sarasota, Brad Schalk decided it was the perfect retro spot to house vintage records.
He had started collecting records in high school before he moved into selling them. On March 2, his store, Vinyl Vault, held its grand opening celebration.
While the new store has around 20,000 vintage records in stock, he hopes it will also serve as a hub for the community, offering "open mics and kind of a community outreach."
"I want to be a touchstone for the community to bring collections in that maybe they don't know much about, and then feature that stuff," he said.
Members of the public gathered around the store shelves and enjoyed a performance by The Garbage-Men band, a raffle and food trucks.
Schalk's passion for collecting began about 10 years ago.
He visited Goodwill and thrift stores, while meeting older people who would sell him their collections.
"The love of music was always propelling me forward, and just learning about different music," he said. "You really realize how people just throw so much stuff out and get rid of things that are totally reusable and interesting and fun."
During the COVID-19 pandemic, he realized the online demand for records, moving into selling items.
"To me, the vinyl is really like a perfect thing to collect and just kind of specialize in, because they're all very unique, and you can easily build a collection really personalized to you, and I just enjoyed doing that," he said, "So when I would find stuff, I would always put aside some and then build a collection for myself."
Although there are few record stores in Sarasota, a particularly unique aspect of Vinyl Vault is the floor, which Schalk decorated with real records that he covered in epoxy.
Damage and scratches prevented these records from playing smoothly. He said perfecting the formula for sealing them was challenging.
"It was a challenge to make all these things come into place in a month, and working with the materials, painting, getting everything working," he said of the store.
The store's selection spans genres, featuring only vintage items and no re-issues, while also offering vintage clothing sourced from locations in Florida.
He noted the record collection branches into less common genres, like Latin or world music.
Schalk says some of his personal favorite type of music are Brazilian music and Latin New Wave bands, while he also likes classic bands like The Cure and The Clash.
He says he loves all genres, and wants to learn more about Country, which he called "a genre that I know is really old and it's American."
Schalk thinks the store is a place that can bring a community together around record collecting.
"The community of vinyl collectors, especially on a local level, they are tight-knit, and enjoy talking about music because they see it as a reflection of who they are, and also, what they want to be," Schalk said.
Jennifer Ocello, a United States Postal Service employee whom he befriended because of her mail delivery, supported him.
"He's so knowledgeable about everything, about albums," she said, stating he helped her determine the value of some of her own records and sold records for her.
She said she would assure him not to be concerned about the weight of the packages he was mailing and that, as he was around the age of her oldest daughter, she wanted to "lift him up."
"He's such a great, great person to be opening a record store," she said.
Grand opening attendee Sean Bruenner was pleased with the store, calling the floor its unique feature and saying he knew of few record stores in the area.
"I think it's a great addition to the neighborhood," he said. "I do have a record player, and I feel like it's just kind of retro and making a comeback, because it sounds different than the auxiliary audio we're used to, or just the appeal of the actually seeing the record spin."
As he moves forward, Schalk hopes to bring new finds to light.
He's interested in local bands that are like under-appreciated artists, perhaps from areas like Newtown.
He's currently in search of an Omni disco record, "The Bottom Of My Heart" by the Disco Socks, released in Sarasota in 1976.
He calls the release "a danceable disco song" and a "bucket list for vinyl vault" that is "100% Sarasota history." The band formerly played regularly at the Columbia Restaurant in St. Armands Circle.
Despite his hard work, he's also conscious of the features he says defines the store experience.
"I'm kind of a perfectionist, but I realize in this industry, just like how you put a needle on a record, it's not going to be perfect, but that little charm that we add by maybe making a mistake here and there, can actually be the difference between someone really loving it, and being like, 'Wow, you guys really are grassroots," he said.
Ocello just expressed one caveat.
"I'm going to miss doing pickup and delivery every day," she said.
