One of the driving forces behind Thirteen Records is co-owner Moog Rogers, whose love of records is matched by her long-standing connection to Dundee’s music community. Known for her knowledge, and instinct for great records, Moog has helped shape a space that feels both intentional and welcoming — where seasoned collectors and first-time diggers feel equally at home.

Founded by longtime local records stalwarts and staffed by people rooted in the city’s listening community, Thirteen Records stands as a welcoming destination for vinyl collectors and CD fans alike. The store inventory is eclectic with new and pre-owned stock brought in daily. Moog and team, having previously been part of the city’s now-missed Groucho’s, worked after its closure during the early days of the pandemic to bring a fresh, inspired space to Union Street that honors the past while charting a bold future for records in Scotland.

Outside of work you can catch her at gigs, "...this past year, I've been to see Richard Hawley, Teenage Fanclub and Lady Wray. I love going to see music live. I also really enjoy gardening."

How did you get into your industry / What motivated you?

I started working at Groucho's - a bit of a Dundee institution - in the early 80's, and I have stayed in the record-shop industry since. When Groucho's closed, after the owner passed away in 2019, me and two of my colleagues decided to open our own place.

What is a day in the life like?

Every day is so different - that's one of the great things about working with both new and pre-owned records. We might have someone bring in a whole collection of hip hop, or shoegaze, or reggae. You never know what you're going to get. My day might be spent pricing records, or doing the accounts (less fun). It's a real mix.

Favorite sale / relationship made from behind the counter?

I would say that working at a record shop has opened up a lot of relationships for me. I started working nights at a local club thanks to my job in the record shop, and that took me in a whole new direction in terms of my music taste. I also made a lot of lifelong friends both at the club and behind the counter. It's been really rewarding.

In your opinion what has been the coolest thing to come through your shop / thing you had to keep / almost couldn't put out for sale:

Peter Perrett's shirt that he wore on the cover a single by The Only Ones. I didn't get to keep that though! A thing I had to keep for myself was The Associates records I didn't already have - they came in through a big collection.

What has been / is the most difficult part of your job?

I think the toughest thing is narrowing down the selection - we have limited space, so we can't have everything all the time! We want to make sure we've got a fairly broad selection for both our newer customers and the regulars who've visited us for years.

I think it's important to listen to your customers and find out what they're listening to, what they're interested in, so you can be on top of what people are enjoying.

What has been the craziest experience that has happened at the shop?

We've had some eventful days - watching a younger member of staff have a meltdown when Evan Dando came into the shop is particularly memorable!

What advice do you have for someone wanting to get into pursuing what you're doing?  

Start with the music you love - if you're interested in it, you'll be excited to learn more about it, I think.

This industry can be fairly tricky to build a career in, but if you're not looking to get rich I think you'll be a lot happier. Don't forgot, though, that there are some pretty tedious and boring parts to this job like any other - like ordering sundries or doing the accounts! It can't just be the fun stuff, unfortunately.

What types of things are happening in your industry / with vinyl that you're excited or worried about?  i.e. innovation, or trends you're seeing.

I like how the industry is always changing. The revival of records with younger people has been interesting to watch - we're even seeing them buy cassette tapes now! So you never know what will be the next big thing.

Are you a vinyl collector yourself?  What drew you to it?

Yes, I am. I'm old enough that buying records was just something everyone did and then working at a record shop meant easy access to records.

Who has been influential to you and your growth as a professional in this industry?

I worked for a while for a woman who owned a concert ticket agency, which was fairly unusual back in the 80s as it was still a bit of a boys club then. She was smart, funny and kind, a great boss and I learned a lot from her.

Anything else you want to share? If not, tell us what you're listening to right now?

At the moment I'm really enjoying The Cords and Lacuna, so I've reverted back to my love of indie.