Checkered Records Online Record Store

Checkered Records is an online record store in Aurora, Illinois, with a long history of grading, shipping, and buying higher-end collections. In this interview, Scott Fox talks about the shop’s approach to condition, sourcing, and the surprising items that collectors value.

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Interview with Checkered Records Online Record Store

Checkered Records runs as an online record store. What made you build it online-first, and how did it start?

Our short history is on our website. We were B&M first.

Selling records online lives and dies by grading and shipping. How do you handle condition, and get records to people safely?

Grading

After 35 years, I tell folks our customers can tell you more about us than I can. I know we are one of the highest reviewed record stores on Google. Here is a link.

Google Reviews

Over thirty-five years, we have helped build collections for many sophisticated vinyl collectors and we've graded thousands and thousands of record albums. We've been doing it longer, at a higher level and with more savvy collectors than most shops and sellers out there, that helps for sure :)

Shipping

Our professional record shipping.

Is Discogs the backbone, or do you sell across a few places — and how do you decide what to list where?

We are our own thing. We only sell through CheckeredRecords.com.

Where do the records come from — how do you source stock without a walk-in counter?

We really only buy larger, "higher-end" collections from collectors and their families. We generally don't buy handfuls of records unless they're ULTRA RARE. Our collection purchases come mostly from word of mouth.

When you're buying a collection, what tells you it's worth taking on?

Do I want it? And do our customers want it?

What's the record that's far more common than people believe?

A scratched one

And what quietly sells for more than sellers expect online?

RCA Discwasher D4+ LOL .... but true

Shipping records through all kinds of weather and handling is its own problem. What condition issues trip people up most?

Couldn't tell you

Do buyers ever surprise you with what they're hunting for from an online shop?

You've seen some of the stuff we sell ...LMBO? They'd have to try pretty hard to surprise us LOL. I have taken the liberty to price our current vintage vinyl in order of price high to low. It will give you an idea of some of our titles. We have about 20,000 albums in backstock at any given time for restocking our website. View the current vintage vinyl selection.

What's the wildest record that's passed through your hands?

Take a look at above answer, should work for this one too :)

Last updated: 2026-10-02

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