Opening the Books: Why Vinyl Costs More in 2025

A Note from Roni & Amit
Owners of Blastbeats Vinyl

Dear Metal Community,

This is our first real post on the BBV blog and we figured we might as well open with some honesty. Prices are up. You have noticed it. We have definitely noticed it. And we want to explain why without any corporate doublespeak. Just straight talk.

Ever since the tariff mess started, the whole importing ecosystem turned into a circus. Some labels paused shipments from the EU. Some packages showed up with surprise bills. Everyone had a different definition of what the hell “tariffs on vinyl” even meant. One day it's “safe,” the next day it isn't. Pure chaos.

Here is the truth as we see it:

1. Technically, vinyl should not be taxed by these tariffs.

2. In reality, vinyl costs more than ever.

Those two things coexist because of everything that happens around the tariffs. So here is the breakdown, as transparent as we can make it.

How vinyl pricing actually works

When we bring records into the shop, the cost stacks up like this:

• Wholesale cost from the label
• International shipping, which swings like crazy
• Currency exchange rates and conversion fees
• Bank fees on every international order
• Packing materials
• A small profit margin, which is the money we use to keep BBV alive before Shopify takes its cut, credit cards take theirs, and our “workforce” (aka our children) demands snacks

What changed since the tariffs?

• Currency: EUR to USD is up about 13 percent since January 2025. When all your stock comes from Europe, that hurts.
• Shipping: Carriers now run everything through customs brokers who charge fees for breathing near a package. If the broker holds it longer, they stack storage fees.
• Random import charges: Brokers are inconsistent. They miss classifications, charge us import fees we should not pay, and leave us to dispute everything. We have multiple open disputes and zero responses so far.
• Label price increases: Pressing plants, materials, and freight are all more expensive. Labels pass some of that down. We do not blame them. Everyone is getting squeezed.

There is also the damage issue. The longer a box sits in transit, the more likely it is to get crushed, split-spined, or bent. We discount those copies heavily and eat the difference.

Why we are telling you this

Because we promised transparency from day one. Because some shops run preorders without accounting for these costs and then get burned. Because you deserve to know why a record might cost a few dollars more than it did six months ago.

We avoid preorders whenever possible because we refuse to list a price we cannot stand behind. We would rather wait, get the vinyl in hand, see the real costs, and price it fairly.

Blastbeats Vinyl is here for the long run. We have not taken a single dollar of profit this entire year. Every cent goes back into bringing more vinyl into the US for collectors who actually care. And when something comes in cheaper than expected, we pass the savings straight to you instead of padding our margin.

This shop exists because we love heavy music and the people who obsess over it. Thanks for sticking with us. More killer records are on the way.

Roni and Amit
Blastbeats Vinyl