Outgoing Music Millennium owner reflects on 40 years of music and community
Music Millennium on E. Burnside St. is the oldest record store in Oregon.
For the first time in 42 years, it’s up for sale.
Terry Currier saved the shop from near-bankruptcy when he purchased the business from Don and Laureen MacLeod in 1984 — and transformed Millennium into one of the most beloved local businesses in East Portland.
Now 70, Currier says the timing is right to find a new owner — a music fan with “business sense and some common sense.”
“I want that building to be a part of Portland’s landscape forever. Plus, I want Music Millennium to be in it for just as many years,” he said.
Currier talked with the Star News about the history of the store, the sale process and his vision for its next era.
How many people have told you they want to buy the business?
I’d say some 100 to 120 different people. It varies because some people don’t read everything they’re supposed to be reading before they respond. I had an 18-year-old kid contact me and I told him, ‘I think you’ll need a larger allowance.’
Is there a certain kind of person who’s showing interest?
It's all over the map. But we’re on the lucky side of things. There's a lot of people interested in the record store. If I would have done this 10 years ago, I wouldn't have had the same kind of response, just because the vinyl market has changed so much.
What are you looking for in a buyer?
They've got to have the passion for music, the passion for community. They’ve got to have some decent business sense and some common sense.
How’s the store been doing?
CDs are through the roof right now. Most record stores got out of CDs. We never did. In fact, piece-wise, if you put vinyl against CDs last year: it’s 55% vinyl sales, 45% CD sales. No kidding.
What's the attraction with CDs?
They're cheaper than streaming. Vinyl was once the nostalgic thing that jumped generations. Now CDs are doing the same thing.
How many people work at Music Millennium? What are their jobs?
Between 35 and 40 people. Most of them are floor staff. Half a dozen supervisors. Two co-store managers. I have an assistant buyer, a bookkeeper and a full-time promotion person who does our socials. We do a twice-a-week email and a lot of events, in-store live performances and listening parties. She takes care of doing all that stuff.
Something that sets Millennium apart is how you celebrate music fans, neighbors and customers. How did that develop?
When I came to Millennium in ‘84, I said to (Don MacLeod) ‘The community has supported Music Millennium, and we need to support the community.’ And he was all about that. I mean, that was part of his philosophy.
We have customers that come in and they latch on to an employee. That employee understands what that customer’s looking for. And they can come in and go, ‘What's the new thing that I should hear?’
We've tried to make it not just a place you shop. It's a place where you come and have an experience. You know, we’re partially a community center.
How did you get your knack for business?
My dad was probably my biggest inspiration. He worked hard all his life. When we were young, he was working multiple jobs to keep the family household together. He worked hard and he did well. He ended up with his own company and he never graduated from high school.
I get in the store at 5:30 in the morning. It's like there are things that need to be done, and I guess I'm the one left raising my hand going, ‘I'll do that.’ That's paid off in the long-term, it seems.
You’ve faced some tough challenges at the store over the years as well.
I remember we were at a low point in 2010. We had a bookkeeper who went to prison for embezzlement. It could have been curtains. I talked to a friend of mine who’s a financial whiz and he goes, ‘Well, the best thing at this point would be just to file bankruptcy.’ I said, ‘Oh, I don't want to do that!’ So I sat down and explained to him what it would take to keep us going and what I was prepared to do. He goes, ‘Well, if anybody can do it, you can do it.’ And he came in the next day and says, ‘I'm not going to loan you any money. But I am going to buy $10,000 in gift certificates.’ That $10,000 was so important for me at that moment. It helped me make payroll. We made it through that time. There’s been many times we could’ve went under.
What’s kept you going?
Well, I'm a music fan. I think as a music fan. I want the record store to be the best record store it can possibly be. All these other things came out of that kind of philosophy. I mean, I was that energetic kid who would call record labels up and go, ‘This record is great. We got to do something with it!’
Sounds like you always had a promoter’s mindset.
Yeah. I mean, I get excited about it.
What made you think now is the right time to sell?
I've been working six days a week all my life. And up until my wife got sick, I was there from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
I mean, I love coming to work. This is going to be hard for me to step away. But it was like, okay, I'm 70 years old. It's the first time age ever came into my mind and I go, ‘Do I have 30 years left? Do I have 25? Do I have 20? Do I have 15?’
There’s some things I would like to do while I’m mobile and healthy. But when you’re working six days a week, it doesn't happen.
What’s your timeframe for selling?
I'm hoping it's this year. I'm not in a super hurry.
What advice would you have for the person or people who take over?
We have a great staff. I would say do not mess with the staff. Come in here, see what we’re all about. See the whole operational stuff. And down the road, make changes if changes need to be made. But only make changes if they’re going to make it better.
I could go to work for the new owners for a year or two and try to bring them up-to-speed on what makes Music Millennium tick. It's not like you can write it down in a manual and go, ‘Okay, this is what you do.’ They got to work in the trenches and understand that.
Do you think you’ll truly retire or still come by the store?
I can picture myself being 85 years old and going to the next owner and saying, ‘Can I work the holiday season for you?’ I just want to be on the floor. I just want to talk to people about music all day long. That was my greatest joy ever working in a record store — asking customers about music. Still is.
— Todd Milbourn, Star News contributor
