Be careful if you are taking things in to sell. Be VERY careful. Not the best place to sell things…read more In fact, a BAD place. The buyers, though, will find almost everything they are looking for. Usually, the prices are good. But forget about the "swap" part. A very uneven playing field that.

I was incredibly impressed with the selection of new vinyl, and the selection of vintage vinyl was…read morepretty good too. Staff seemed friendly and polite, everything was clean and organized. The issue is the pricing. I prefer to buy in a store and support independent record stores and small businesses. I have my limits though. Not sure how he can get away with charging 20-300% more than other sellers. My record store day I bought for $26 he had for $45, my RSD I got for 35 he had for 50. The Zappa broadcast I bought for $8 new sealed he wanted $40 for, another I got for $13 sealed he wanted $40 as well. Most the vintage vinyl was worth half what it was priced at. I know you've got to pay the rent and I know prices are higher brick and mortar, but why are your prices higher than stores in downtown Chicago? Highest priced store I've ever been to, and I'm a traveler, I go to a LOT of record stores. I could have easily bought a couple dozen albums if they were even 20% cheaper, but I left with nothing and very sad that I had to pass on so much good stuff. I guess you can build a pretty epic collection if you don't price things to actually sell...Went online and bought what I wanted for 30-50% less than he wanted. Didn't feel good about it, but I'm not going to be ripped off just to support indie record stores...

Conveniently located in downtown Champaign near the Illinois Terminal (Amtrak, MTD buses) and a…read morestone's throw from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus, Exile on Main Street has a fantastic selection of new and previously loved vinyl, CDs, cassette tapes, and more. I recently met the owner, Jeff Brandt, at the store while my partner was on the hunt for Taylor Swift and Charli XCX vinyls. Jeff was immediately attentive and we struck up conversations about Taylor Swift, the positives and areas of improvement downtown Champaign could use, the area's history as a musical mecca, and much more. It was easy to see how much love and sweat equity he's put into the community and the store. An adjacent vintage store has closed but Exile regularly hosts pop-ups, underscoring its community-first vibes. When you're looking for vinyl finds, skip online, Target and chains and support institutions like Exile on Main!

This is the THE record store to visit in Champaign-Urbana. Yeah, there's Record Swap if you want…read moreused classic rock or See You Vinyl with their dozens of records, but Exile is the place to be. The store itself has an interesting layout that promotes exploration and discovery. There's a nice mix of used and new vinyl, (mostly used) CDs, and even some cassettes and VHS tapes. I'd say Exile's strengths are all things indie, major artists from the 90s onward, classic rock, and a bunch of niche stuff. I like to find reissues of 90s and 00s electronic stuff there, and they typically stock new jazz releases from Blue Note and some of the other big labels (not a huge selection, but everything they have is good). Of course, this is just my perception. You'll find each genre well represented. If you don't see what you want, the owner is happy to get it for you. He's a great guy with a deep knowledge of music. He actually has a whole section that he's selling from his personal collection, which is an interesting category. It's like a bunch of great titles that have been out of circulation for a long time. Overall, this is a fun place to find good music. Check it out.

Just walking into the store throws you into a fit of nostalgia. The staff is always super friendly…read moreand always willing to help out. Highly recommend!

Not a bad store, except that it is nearly impossible to even get someone to look your direction…read more The selection is what you would expect for a place that buys from people. It is inconsistent, but you can also find some pretty cool things. Prices are not bad and they often have deals if you buy multiple items. I would say that they are better for movies than anything else; it is a pretty vast selection. It can be crowded and a bit messy. It seems like the employees are most of the problem here. The shelves can be really out of order and I have seen many times when the same item was listed at multiple different prices or had gunk and other stickers all over it. If you are patient and do not mind doing all the work yourself you can find decent deals; just be prepared to wait ages for anyone to help with things you cannot reach yourself.

I used to go here at least once a week to check out new music. As I'd climb the stairs from Green…read moreStreet, they'd always have something cool playing, with the jacket displayed at the counter. Checking through the bargain bins one day in 1975, I found a copy of Buckingham Nicks for a couple bucks. I'd been going through Fleetwood Mac withdrawals with no new albums, so I bought it. Another time, the sound of Chameleon greeted me, and I just had to buy Herbie Hancock's groundbreaking Headhunters album, take it home and learn the keyboard parts. Record Factory workers were always on top of new releases and bands, and could always direct you to what you were looking for. I suspect they've kept that work ethic into the CD era. Highly recommended.

Every university town requires a shambly old bookstore with overflowing shelves whispering wisps of…read morearcana to all who pass its portal. This is Urbana's. My favorite thing about this particular emporium of tomes, though, is that the kindly gentleman who owns it is a dead ringer for a beloved childhood fictional character, Professor Branestawm.

The best part of used bookstores is the element of serendipity. I find books I have loved that I…read morenever knew existed, and would never have known to search for them. New bookstores, in my view, are very limited in scope -- the owner has a particular taste, majority of titles (not counting classics) have been published in the last 1-5 years, from major publishing houses, almost everything has been on the NYT besteller's list. Very little element of surprise, few hidden gems. Used bookstores have so much more serendipity, so many hidden gems, so much more variety. And Priceless Books has this element of used bookstores, but twice as much as any other used bookstore I've been to. And I've been to a lot! On every road trip, if I'm just passing through, I check out their used bookstores. This one's special. Yes, it's messy and there's piles of books on the floor blocking the path (definitely not a wheelchair friendly store). Yes, you have to crane your neck to view titles up on the shelf. Yes, the store clerk is not gregarious (but does have a twinkle in his eye). But it's worth it! I have found so many books that my here that my life feels more complete having read them, and I never would have known of them if not for this store. This can be said of many a used book store, but Priceless Books just has more of it, and it's something special.

First and foremost and ultimately important is the fact that Polyvinyl has a handful of my…read morefavourite bands signed to its roster. But the obvious love for this record company that sprouts from that fact aside, the whole business is legit. The selection of merchandise rules, and they are always having awesome sales to get rid of backstock and excess inventory. If, by chance, a t-shirt size is wrong and the error is on my end, they will still replace it with the proper size at no additional cost. Only once in nearly a decade of supporting this company has my order been wrong, and even then they immediately took steps to correct it. Each package I receive always has extras as well: posters and stickers and samplers and promo material. And there is always, always an Airhead, which is awesome because they're delicious AND vegan. WIN. I will be a Polyvinyl fan for life, and although the record industry is changing drastically, I hope that people still continue to support the independent labels out there that are doing it right.

I wish I could buy every record from Polyvinyl. I just got my 7" from the band STRFKR in and it…read morecame with another 7" of a band they wanted me to hear for free. Along with that was a couple stickers and as always an air head! Even with all of this included the 7" I bought was only $5.00 and shipping came the same week I bought it! definitely the best and quickest shipping I've seen beyond Amazon.

Great B&N! It's huge and has a great selection of new books. Store was very tidy and checkout was…read morevery quick.

Overpriced book. The rudest employees you'll ever meet. Non accurate website. There needs to be…read moresome major changes to Barnes and Nobles policies and pricing before I ever consider buying from them again. The member system barely saves you any money. If you use Barnes and Nobles to find new books to read, don't buy them from the store, buy them from amazon or other cheaper online sellers. Some people may not care about paying extra to buy from Barnes and Noble, but I'm not one of those people. I once asked about price matching and the employee looked at me like I was dumb. I mean the sales people and cashiers here are the absolute WORST I've ever been around at any business! Seriously, take your business elsewhere, it's not worth it.