Shock Vinyl opens in Milford
It’s a common thing that when someone retires, they end up busier than ever. For Marc Clery, he didn’t stay retired, but went back to work again, opening Shock Vinyl in downtown Milford.
Clery was a photojournalist for 45 years, working for publications such as the Miami Herald and the News Journal. But what Clery, a music lover who once played drums and amassed his own record collection, really wanted to do was have his own record shop.
He started looking into making his dream a reality by researching sites in Dover and Milford in July 2022. He hit upon a suite in the newly renovated Shops of Penney Square on Walnut Street. The building was purchased by EasySpeak owners Zack and Marissa King in 2021 and has been rehabbed as a restaurant and retail complex.
“It’s got a really great, retro feel,” Clery said.
The main attraction at Shock Vinyl is, of course, the vinyl records, which range from new pressings of classic albums to used, good-condition copies. For those on a budget, there are bins with albums for $5, $3 and $1. The store also has toy collectibles, music books, turntables and musical instruments, namely guitars, basses, amps and drum gear.
Owing to his longtime career as a photographer, Clery also sells exclusive prints of rock performers he has photographed over the years, everyone from Alice Cooper to Warren Zevon to James Hetfield and Debbie Harry. Clery said he will buy record collections, but those are by appointment only.
Milford held a special appeal for Clery, since he started his photojournalism career at the Milford Chronicle. He said the town remains small, but it is becoming more cosmopolitan, especially with the new Bayhealth Sussex County medical center and new shops in the downtown area.
“I just think it's a friendly area,” he said.
Clery summed up the appeal of vinyl records thusly, “It takes you back to that time when you used to listen to them. There weren’t all these distractions. When you listen to that album, you remember it like an old friend.”
Shock Vinyl is located at 39 N. Walnut St., Suite 102, and is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. For more information, call 302-725-4422 or go to facebook.com/shock.vinyl.
