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Tropicali in Furs Closed?

deanosoundsdeanosounds 181 Posts
edited April 2009 in Strut Central
Does anyone know if Tropicali in Furs in NYC is closed? Everytime I call or visit NYC it's always closed. What happened? I went in once but was in a rush so I didn't get a chance to do some proper browsing.

  Comments

  • spivyspivy 866 Posts
    the brazilian stuff always seemed way overpriced. i'd be cool paying ebay prices for the walk-in experience but his prices were always on some "i think i'm good... thanks though" tip.
  • HorseleechHorseleech 3,830 Posts
    No, it's not closed, Joel just keeps "creative" hours. He's not much for answering the phone either, even if he's there.

    Great dude, though.
  • Jonny_PaycheckJonny_Paycheck 17,825 Posts
    Yeah we chopped it up outside his (open) shop Tuesday night.

    He's definitely still there. Generally open late in the evenings (as opposed to the middle of the afternoon).
  • georgeibrahimgeorgeibrahim 676 Posts
    his prices were always on some "i think i'm good... thanks though" tip.
    this sounds like sounds of the universe in london, especially when it comes to Brazilian records- they put out some stuff i'm told are dollar bin finds out in Brazil for ??25 or more - its
  • spivyspivy 866 Posts
    his prices were always on some "i think i'm good... thanks though" tip.
    this sounds like sounds of the universe in london, especially when it comes to Brazilian records- they put out some stuff i'm told are dollar bin finds out in Brazil for ??25 or more - its
    to be fair joel often has quality pieces. dude does the work and knows whats good. its just that his prices seem to be stuck in a time machine.
  • AKallDayAKallDay 830 Posts
    joel is most definitely open, he does just keep funny hours. wed thru sun is your best bet and i guarantee he will be there with some red wine and cigs dancing and such with customers.

    and regarding his prices he is fair for nyc which is not a dollar bin town if you haven't realized by now.
    he also travels to brazil a shit ton and hauls back heap of records so that you can walk down the street and buy them so it's a specialty shop in that manner, and his prices are still very fair.
  • DongerDonger 854 Posts
    his prices were always on some "i think i'm good... thanks though" tip.
    this sounds like sounds of the universe in london, especially when it comes to Brazilian records- they put out some stuff i'm told are dollar bin finds out in Brazil for ??25 or more - its

    Aren't they all $1 bin finds, until they get put in a specialty record store?
  • Jonny_PaycheckJonny_Paycheck 17,825 Posts
    Well more to the point that's faulty logic - when I was in Brazil, records were not cheap but due to the exchange rate there was a lot of room for profit if you were gonna sell them in the States. That said, plane tickets and shipping are quite expensive and anyone who thinks it's CHEAP or EASY to go there and ship back even the most common records is tripping.
  • spivyspivy 866 Posts
    even for nyc his prices are higher than average. big city just recently put out a nice little haul of brazilian stuff and it was all priced very fairly. academy always puts out banging brazilian stuff priced to sell. mr paycheck seems like he prices to sell. i don't know joel very well...he seems like a good dude. i'd like to support his record store i just always leave empty handed.
  • SoundclashSoundclash 77 Posts
    It was awesome when I visited the shop, he had copies of every Brazilian raer I could think of: Mundo Racional, Marcia Maria, Azimuth 7"... IMO well above Ebay prices though...
  • DJFerrariDJFerrari 2,411 Posts
    Well more to the point that's faulty logic - when I was in Brazil, records were not cheap but due to the exchange rate there was a lot of room for profit if you were gonna sell them in the States. That said, plane tickets and shipping are quite expensive and anyone who thinks it's CHEAP or EASY to go there and ship back even the most common records is tripping.

  • pointmanpointman 1,042 Posts
    This thread just reminded me I need lots of Brazilian records. Particularly Tropicalia stuff. Holler with the sales/trades people.
  • AKallDayAKallDay 830 Posts
    Well more to the point that's faulty logic - when I was in Brazil, records were not cheap but due to the exchange rate there was a lot of room for profit if you were gonna sell them in the States. That said, plane tickets and shipping are quite expensive and anyone who thinks it's CHEAP or EASY to go there and ship back even the most common records is tripping.


    a true.
    just like a banana, you are talking about an imported commodity, one that goes through so many steps before you can even get near it. travel and time and customs costs are all to be taken into account here, and the fact that joel is brazilian so by virtue of growing up there he is going to have access to more stuff. and of course there's the cost of running a retail operation in nyc, and the fact that he needs to make a profit and a living. i dont think his prices are jacked up or that he's that drastically different from what johnny or jared are charging. but then again these records, they don't grow on trees....
  • spivyspivy 866 Posts
    i dont think his prices are jacked up or that he's that drastically different from what johnny or jared are charging. but then again these records, they don't grow on trees....
    last time i was in tropicalia he had a copy of gal costa: gal costa on the wall for $75. that price is WAY high. its not even that uncommon of a record (as far as brazilian stuff goes).
  • selperfugeselperfuge 1,165 Posts
    OH HAI I CAN HAZ $450 TOM ZE
  • Jonny_PaycheckJonny_Paycheck 17,825 Posts
    Is that "WAY high"? If it's EX to NM, I price that at $60. I have a scuffy copy right now at $30. $75 for a clean copy is not that insane. It's a beautiful record.

    I guess you can get it on ebay for $30-40, wonder if the grading will be accurate, and pay an additional $15-20 in shipping. Pick your poison... I don't personally think that is a "common" record. But I also don't feel that ebay is the be all/end all of how records should be priced.

    If Joel has customers for that stuff - and he appears to - then that's all that really matters. You can find a record in any shop in this city that's overpriced, including mine I'm sure. I know plenty of people that score serious heat at Tropicalia just by going frequently and digging thoroughly. Eye of the beholder I guess. Personally, I'm glad he's there, I don't see the point in dissing dudes who run interesting record shops...
  • spivyspivy 866 Posts
    Is that "WAY high"? If it's EX to NM, I price that at $60. I have a scuffy copy right now at $30. $75 for a clean copy is not that insane. It's a beautiful record.

    I guess you can get it on ebay for $30-40, wonder if the grading will be accurate, and pay an additional $15-20 in shipping. Pick your poison... I don't personally think that is a "common" record. But I also don't feel that ebay is the be all/end all of how records should be priced.

    If Joel has customers for that stuff - and he appears to - then that's all that really matters. You can find a record in any shop in this city that's overpriced, including mine I'm sure. I know plenty of people that score serious heat at Tropicalia just by going frequently and digging thoroughly. Eye of the beholder I guess. Personally, I'm glad he's there, I don't see the point in dissing dudes who run interesting record shops...
    jp- i compared it to other shops in nyc (including yours). i've seen (and bought my copy) gal costa: gal costa at other shops for half what he is charging. clean and first press. academy has had it a couple times in the past year or two and both times it wasn't more than $40. i'm not trashing his shop other than what he is charging. his shop looks good. he is always playing something interesting when i walk in the door. he seems like a nice enough guy. and most of all i want record stores to be successful so i can continue spending my money at them. but i really do think $75 for that record (yes its a beautiful lp) is way high.

  • Jonny_PaycheckJonny_Paycheck 17,825 Posts
    I think $40's a great deal for that record; I don't think $75 is spectacularly high though. There's records I sell for half of what someone else might sell them for too. That's just the nature of it, I can think of several instances of that happening the other way around. I think it's tough to single out like... ONE record and then say "oh well I found it elsewhere for this much". Just taking that particular record, I've never had a problem selling it (at the price I mentioned) even though someone else might price it cheaper.
  • spivyspivy 866 Posts
    i used that ONE record as a reference but there have been others. tim maia and jorge ben lps priced just a tad bit higher than reasonable. and by reasonable i mean above the normal price. i guess dude is doing just fine and he can charge whatever he wants for the records he sells i just think across the board his prices are higher than other spots. that being said i mean no ill will for him and his record store. i can understand you defending your neighbor-friend-fellow record slanger and in 2009 its nice to have shops still holding it down and catering to a specific style. no ill will here for good nyc record spots.
  • Jonny_PaycheckJonny_Paycheck 17,825 Posts


  • selperfugeselperfuge 1,165 Posts
    Joel's prices are just fine for selling specialist niche demand low supply product. check the price of a haircut or a halter top in the east village if you disagree. just being able to continue to hang a shingle in a high rent market shows you he knows what he's doing.

    also i got VG- ring brun Chi-Ali "Age Ain't Nothin' But a Numba" 12" out of his one dollah bin DEAL
  • spivyspivy 866 Posts
    Joel's prices are just fine for selling specialist niche demand low supply product. check the price of a haircut or a halter top in the east village if you disagree. just being able to continue to hang a shingle in a high rent market shows you he knows what he's doing.

    also i got VG- ring brun Chi-Ali "Age Ain't Nothin' But a Numba" 12" out of his one dollah bin DEAL
    hey-you know...you got a point. thses are tough times. let the man do his thing. just like you are doing. fishing his dollah bins and window shopping for halter tops.

    i kid.
  • randomaccessmikerandomaccessmike 97 Posts
    I used to buy from Joel on the regular and with frequent trips to his store I got fair prices on some great records in ~NM condition. I will happily drop 50 on Jorge, Costa, etc records in a bulk purchase. I've never had such luck sight unseen when trying to get the stuff on ebay.

    There were always prices that made me cringe: 120 - Negro E Lindo no thank you, but in time hanging at the store paid off.

    cosign - his dollar bins also made some overspending worthwhile.
  • georgeibrahimgeorgeibrahim 676 Posts
    high prices + brazil records = the norm from dealers if you're after stuff in good condition, all i'm saying is that sometimes the prices are too inflated (jlandid related), hopefully this guy isn't like that.
  • kicks79kicks79 1,342 Posts
    I'm glad he's there, I don't see the point in dissing dudes who run interesting record shops...

  • p_gunnp_gunn 2,284 Posts
    are there any stores that cater to specific subcultures in record collecting that don't have SOME completely ridiculous overpricing?

    the key is just to buy the records you think are priced fairly and realize the ridiculous wall prices are for people who, for one reason or another, money is not an issue... when you REALLY specialize, you can get away w/ that...

    the stores that you can hate on are the ones where almost NOTHING is priced reasonably... (-cough, cosmo's in Toronto...)
  • hemolhemol 2,578 Posts
    check the price of a haircut or a halter top in the east village if you disagree.

    I buy my Halter tops in the west village so I can't really speak on that. But, my haircut on first and first was $14.
  • crazypoprockcrazypoprock 1,037 Posts


    and regarding his prices he is fair for nyc which is not a dollar bin town if you haven't realized by now.
    he also travels to brazil a shit ton and hauls back heap of records so that you can walk down the street and buy them so it's a specialty shop in that manner, and his prices are still very fair.

    funny you should mention that nyc is not a dollar bin town...Tropicalia in Furs has one of the best dollar bins in town! Seriously! I used to bump shoulders with Joel in dollar bins many years ago and i think he still has a love for dollar bins so he keeps his well stocked. Everybody knows that you don't go to a specialty shop looking for sick deals on what they specialize in...you find deals on the stuff they don't specialize in. Thus i found a Sugar Baby Weet 12" there for a buck.
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