Waukegan Music Exchange

Waukegan Music Exchange is a downtown Waukegan record shop next to the Genesee Theatre, with used records, CDs, local art, and live music nights under one roof. In the interview, the owner explains why he opened the shop, how the local hardcore scene found the room, and how buying, cleaning, and pricing records works from the front desk.

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Interview with Waukegan Music Exchange

Waukegan Music Exchange is on Genesee Street next door to the Genesee Theater — a downtown block with real music history in Lake County. What's the origin story of the shop, and what made downtown Waukegan the right place for it?

The actual origin story is I started to wonder why I had to drive 45 minutes to Evanston or McHenry to find a good record store when my hometown has 90,000 people. Surely there was demand here, right? It seemed like a slam dunk, but when I couldn't find anyone else willing to open a record store I said the heck with it and did it myself.

Waukegan sits north of the main Chicago record scene but has its own distinct history — Jack Benny grew up there, the Genesee has been a music venue for decades. What role does Waukegan Music Exchange play in that local culture, and who's walking through the door on a Saturday?

In less than two years WMX has carved out a giant role in the local culture, mostly by serendipity. I had no idea the area was full of hardcore punk fans until a few bands asked to play here, and now we're one of the top hardcore venues in Lake County. We'll book just about any local musicians, hang art from local artists, promote events and just basically say yes to anyone who wants a showcase. We're welcoming to anyone (except MAGA, who can fuck right off) and word gets around. So just about anyone might walk through the door on a Saturday — dads introducing daughters to "the good stuff," couples on dates who spend $2 on a CD, bluesniks who grab all my Paul Butterfield, etc. And people come on Sundays just to hang with Millie the #RecordStoreDog.

The shop's hours are Saturday, Sunday, and Wednesday evenings — with occasional Friday events. That's a deliberate rhythm rather than standard retail. What's behind that schedule, and does it change what kind of customer builds a habit around you?

The schedule is all I can handle since I still have a 9-to-5 (as a writer at a marketing agency). (We're actually open Fridays now, too, since I hired Alecs.) So nothing deliberate there.

You lean into jazz, soul, funk, hip-hop, and rock — a specific spread. What's actually flying off the shelves right now, and which one keeps surprising you by staying strong in the Waukegan market?

I don't really "lean into" jazz, soul, funk, hip-hop, and rock — I mean, that's a pretty broad spectrum. But since 95% of the inventory is used, the store's focus is really dictated by what the community brings to trade in. (I do buy new vinyl, mostly in punk, hip-hop and Latin, since we get very few trade-ins in those categories.) Nothing really flies off the shelves, but certain artists' LPs get snatched up pretty quick when they get traded in — Prince, Michael Jackson, Black Sabbath, P-Funk, Replacements, etc.

Every album gets inspected and cleaned before it hits the floor — that's real time on every record. Why has that step mattered enough to be non-negotiable, and does it change what you can accept from someone selling records to you in person?

Ever eat at a restaurant with an open kitchen? That's the vibe we have here. We do all the cleaning and inspecting at the desk right in front, so people can see that even if the record they want has a beat-up cover and a few marks on the vinyl, they can be confident it will play fine when they get it home. They can also ask to spin it on our turntable, and if all else fails our policy is "If it sounds like crap, we'll take it back." So all this doesn't really impact what I will or won't buy, but condition definitely affects the price.

Your model right now is that you don't buy records outright, but customers can arrange to sell to you in person. What does that process actually look like from a seller's side — how should they reach out, what do you look for, and what tends to work?

Actually, we buy records (and CDs) outright all the time. (Mostly in person, but I will go to Discogs to track down something for a customer.) The experience is basically:

Sellers call me, or just walk in with a bunch of records.

Sometimes I go to them if they have a very large collection.

I give them cash and keep the records.

I refuse no one, and no one leaves empty handed. Even if all they bring is 50 Mathis and Streisand LPs in crappy shape I'll give them $5 just for their trouble.

Illinois has humid summers, brutal winters, and a lot of collections that lived in a basement or garage. What condition damage do you see most in Lake County collections, and what would you tell a seller to do differently to protect records going forward?

I see perfectly preserved collections and collections I need a hazmat suit to move. Most people take very good care of their own records — the stuff in bad condition often comes from dead relatives — so there's not much I can tell people. Except maybe, don't stash your records behind the bar in your man cave because all the spines get kicked in and it's very sad.

Waukegan Music Exchange combines a record store with live-music nights in a way most shops don't attempt. For someone thinking about opening a shop that's part venue, part retail — especially in a smaller-market downtown — what did you learn early on that you wish someone had told you?

I never set out to run a music venue and I'm still learning as I go. (Someone loaned me a PA system and I'm the most clueless sound engineer ever.) The only advice I could give is to go with the flow, be open to almost anything, and let the enthusiasm of the artists propel everything. I don't pay artists but don't take any of the door or tips — the only thing I get out of these shows is foot traffic and good vibes. And that's plenty.

Last updated: 2026-09-12

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