Retro Riot, a shop selling vinyl records, books, CD’s and a variety of collectibles, was opened in downtown Pullman on Feb. 24.

What sparked owner Brett Borden’s interest in opening the shop was his passion for books and old records, as well as his experience at previous jobs.

“I have some experience in a similar sort of trade, before I moved here I worked at a shop in Tri-Cities … they do comics, records, books and games and a bunch of different things,” Borden said. “I took a solid musical knowledge and I learned the business aspects of it.”

Borden grew up in Spokane Valley and lived in Pullman for about a year and half in 2007.

“Coming back, I was impressed that it had grown so much and it’s catching up to Moscow,” Borden said. “Ultimately, the deciding factor for me was the records, because I had realized that the record shop in Moscow had moved to Olympia.”

Borden describes his shop as “retro entertainment and pop culture.” He said he likes to have the products in his store complement one another.

A regular customer of Retro Riot Matthew Demmer has been coming to this store since it first opened.

Demmer said he and his girlfriend moved to Pullman from Seattle last summer and were surprised to not find any stores like Retro Riot. He said when the saw the sign go up, they went in the store and thanked Borden for opening the shop.

“We’re thrilled,” Demmer said. “I hope that people come so they can do well and stay open and be here a long time.”

Borden has been working to get his name out to the public by donating gift baskets to companies and their events, such as Kazzufest held April 2.

“For me, it’s a chance to do what I love and apply my knowledge,” Borden said. “Two major state universities close together with an industry that is being largely driven by college students and people of that age, I thought there was a certain void that needed being filled.”

More students have been embracing vinyl format, as it has an older feel to it and the quality of the sound is incomparable to CDs or Mp3s.

“When you look at a sound wave on a CD, it’s a digital mimic,” Borden said. “On an analog, it’s a true reproduction of the sound wave and those little differences can shine through.”

The building is about 5,000 square feet and there are many products with some space still unused, and Borden said that overtime he hopes to develop more and follow trends.

“I would like to get more shelving for games, the trend items, and expand further into other vendors,” Borden said. “The sky is the limit.”

Borden is optimistic that his new business will reach new levels and hopes that college students will have more incentive to leave campus and come check out his shop.

Reporting by Latisha Jensen