Today we’d like to introduce you to Kye Hallows.
Kye, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Lavender Vinyl was opened by Kye Hallows and Blake Lundell on July 2 of 2016. Both of us had worked in record stores across Utah leading up to opening our shop, and had a combined total of 20 years of experience in buying and selling records. We’d both hit a point in our careers working at other shops where the only way to level up was to go into business for ourselves and that’s just what we did!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Being a small business owner comes with so much satisfaction, but also with obstacles to match that. Every decision and detail comes down to us. At the end of the day we are completely responsible for our income and success. Our business has been fortunate to be loved and supported by the community we are in even with the 2020 pandemic that shuttered many small businesses. We believe we succeeded because we were willing to pivot our business model to meet our customers where they were at. We ended up offering a curated delivery service during the first few months of the pandemic while our store was shut down. This allowed us to stay connected with our customers and even offer them some joy and understanding by bringing music to them at their doors.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Lavender Vinyl is a proudly queer owned business in the heart of Ogden’s downtown. We buy and sell records and new and vintage audio gear. We’re a community safe space and are very active in the goings on of our city- be that mutual aid, pride celebrations, local music, and sponsoring other queer entrepreneurial endeavors. We love to partner with other small businesses and organizations because we truly believe the only way forward is together. We’re willing to travel for large collections, and we pay top dollar for great albums!
How do you think about luck?
I believe more in hard work and circumstantial support than luck, but we have certainly had an amazing community of people rallying around this business and ensuring that we are successful. I believe that making connections and maintaining relationships is a huge part of our success. I also believe heavily in mutual support- and I am fortunate to be the owner of a business in Ogden, Utah, because that mutual support is very much a mantra of the small business community as a whole here.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://lavendervinyl.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lavendervinyl
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lavendervinyl
