Based in Kelowna, British Columbia, Tammy Brown is a longtime marketing and design professional, creative, consultant, and vinyl lover who turned her love of those things into Vinyl Pursuit. What started in 2021 with a simple question, would people buy vintage records from an online store? has grown into a business serving collectors around the world, all driven by Tammy’s belief that there’s still a little bit of magic in putting on a record.

Vinyl Pursuit is a collector-run online record store specializing in vintage vinyl, with an emphasis on careful grading, ultrasonic restoration, and making sure the record that arrives is exactly what a buyer expects. From its home in Canada’s Okanagan Valley, the shop ships internationally and has built its approach around something pretty simple, connecting people with the music they love.

When not grading, packing and shipping records Tammy enjoys hiking, being at the beach, reading, designing and listening to music.

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

Anyway, covid came and my agency was out of business. I hard more time to play vinyl and reconnect. I started selling old albums to replace with better copies. Built a small website to see if people would buy vintage vinyl online. They would! Built a much larger site which is today, Vinyl Pursuit Inc.

What is a day in the life like?

Vinyl Pursuit keeps me busy 3-4 days a week. I have help with packing orders and such. So today I am doing paperwork, customer outreach in the early morning. Preparing orders for shipping and then whatever other work needs attention in the afternoon.

Favorite sale / relationship made from behind the counter?

Some customers you really form a bond with. There was a customer from the east side of the country who had purchased from us maybe 50-60 times and he shared how he has terminal cancer. So he orders vinyl from his childhood to share with his family. They would gather in the living room and have these listening parties. He passes, but deeply personal stories like this are a large part of why.

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:

A limited edition Stone Temple Pilots - Purple release... It was beautiful!

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

The need to operate from one location... You can't pack orders from the beach.

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

During the purchase of a collection, the seller's ex-wife shows up and demands that we pay her half the money. It was loud and nasty. We ultimately left them to sort it out.

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

Build your inventory as demand rises, don't stock more than you can manage...

Always put ethics and customer care first! This can be expensive up front but will pay off in the long run. We have hundreds of verified 5-Star reviews and they are like money in the bank! Build your inventory as demand rises, don't stock more than you can manage. Friends with muscles help - records are heavy!

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.

Crappy mass production and consumption. Although it actually helps our case because we focus on vintage and early pressings. It does seem like colored vinyl is sounding better than before, that's good for everyone!

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

Absolutely!! My mother was an audiophile so music as always played around the house and I started collecting when I was 12. Through moves, raising kids and life, the vinyl got packed away for 25 years, but I always stored it safely.

Then I bought an older place in Kelowna BC Canada. It had an old cold room so I had it fitted for vinyl storage: sealed, temperature and humidity controlled, and dark. Slowly upgraded my vintage system. Now it is a thing of beauty and wonder!

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

I have felt quite isolated on this journey but I would say Victor Temprano who owned a record store in town, was an avid collector and consigned some of his most stunning Beatles imports with us and always had lots of great advice.

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

Loving the female voices for summer....Heart, Lana, Sinead. Also new stuff like Angine.