Bull Moose: Ready to take over the world
OK, so maybe Brett Wickard is exaggerating ... but he did create a music icon and a tight fan base.
By ANN S. KIM, Staff Writer
November 16, 2009
Bull Moose has thrived by adopting such strategies as appealing to collectors and building community.
Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
Michelle LaRoche of Alfred and Patrick Gordon of Kennebunk look over DVDs at Bull Moose on Sunday in Scarborough. The company has evolved into more than a music store, now offering movies and games – which is why owner Brett Wickard took “Music” out of the Bull Moose name several years ago.
Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
Mike Gross and Jessi Kelley of Belfast look over the CD selection at Bull Moose Music in Scarborough. The company has prospered despite a tough economy and growth of digital downloads.
Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
Chris Rapalus, a warehouse clerk at Bull Moose Music in Scarborough, stocks the shelves Sunday. Bull Moose founder and owner Brett Wickard started his successful 10-store, 110-employee chain 20 years ago.
Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
When the local record store shut down, Brett Wickard bragged that he would open one of his own.
The Bowdoin College student took the plunge with $7,000 he earned from a job writing billing software and a $30,000 loan from the company, which would let him work off the debt if the venture failed.
He arranged his course schedule around store hours and had friends fill in the gaps. He kept at programming in the meantime and used the money to pay the first employee of Bull Moose Music Enterprises.
Twenty years later, the business now has 10 stores in Maine and New Hampshire and 110 employees. Revenues are in the "low to mid eight figures," and 2009 will be the best-performing year yet, Wickard said.
"We want to take over the known world," Wickard, 41, said Sunday. "In our dreams, Walmart is a department of Bull Moose."
The business is marking its 20th anniversary and looking to grow despite the challenge of big box stores, digital downloads and an economic downturn. Other music retailers, both large and small, have met their demise.
Part of the Bull Moose strategy is appealing to collectors by offering a deeper selection. A certain item may sell only twice a year, Wickard said, but it's worth keeping if each of its purchasers is a top customer.
That kind of analysis is possible because of the company's software, which is produced in-house.
"We're a laid-back company, but under that we have a really aggressive mathematical engine," Wickard said.
Building community is another part of Bull Moose's approach. The idea is that fans – of a particular artist, movie or a game – will want to share their interest with others. And online sites have a hard time competing with physical sites that can, for instance, bring in an artist for a live performance, Wickard said.
At the Scarborough store, more than 50 people listened as singer-songwriter Mike Doughty performed between the folk and new-age racks Sunday afternoon. Doughty, who had a sold-out show scheduled in Portland later in the day, signed CDs and posters for fans afterward.
Carl Fisher, a 35-year-old designer for an engineering firm, hadn't known about the performance ahead of time, but it was the kind of thing that appealed to him. He shies away from downloading music, preferring to browse the racks for deals.
"When it comes to music, I always like to do it in person. Always been that way," said Fisher, who had already picked up Edie Brickell, Love and Rockets and Leonard Cohen CDs from the used section.
For some customers – as well as customers-turned-employees – regular visits to Bull Moose have been part of their growing up.
Andrew Patneaude, a 22-year-old metal finisher from Saco, spent a lot of time at Bull Moose while in high school. It's still where he wants to go to pick up a new release.
"I'll definitely come here. It's like tradition," he said as he browsed the vinyl section.
Bull Moose's roots may be in music, but the business has evolved since the first storefront opened in Brunswick.
Movies and games are playing a larger role in the business. The company's name has morphed over time to reflect the change. "Enterprises" was dropped early on because it struck Wickard as a pretentious idea of his younger self. "Music" was lopped off several years ago to reflect the company's wider emphasis.
Last year marked the first time that new music represented less than half of the company's sales. Wickard said that it's not that music is shrinking but that the other areas are growing.
In the works are plans to expand the pre-owned options for music, movies and games and triple the size of the Bangor store to 11,000 square feet. The additional space will allow the addition of a new product line that Wickard is not yet ready to disclose.
That was the store where 27-year-old B.J. Carr spent a lot of time in high school and college. He's now head clerk in the Scarborough warehouse.
"Music's really important to me," he said. "Being somehow involved makes life a little easier."
Staff Writer Ann S. Kim can be contacted at 791-6383 or at:
akim@pressherald.com
