Spite Records is a less-than-subtle knee-jerk reaction to price gougers. It wasn't just the assholes on Ebay, Discogs, and Etsy, but otherwise reputable sites not known for selling music started doing it.
Honesty and integrity should be paramount in the DIY world, and there are many great distros out there. Our aim, however, is not simply to be just another distro, no. The goal is to provide records at a fair price to our cost, while giving them the same level of care that we do our own record library. Going further, if wholesale from a distributor is higher than retail from the label, we will not carry it...yes, wholesale distributors do this - no, we're not gonna call them out at this point, but we will say that two of them purport themselves to be underground and independent.
We only carry new, unused, records. No, we would not like to import and carry your used world music records from South Africa, but thanks for reaching out...yes, that's in here because it has literally happened.
The pictures we post are taken from our own library, though sometimes a single record from stock will be selected to receive the rice paper inner sleeve and dual pocket outer sleeve for pictures when it is a different variant than exists in the library, then sold at the same price as a regular record, rather than an *upgraded cost. We use Whiplash mailers for all orders containing a 12" record, as we maintain the opinion that they are the best and most durable mailers available.
We know some people like having duplicate personal copies or get copies for friends, but the goal is to keep these out of the hands of those who would seek to drive market prices up by ripping the consumer off in the third markets, when we want market stabilization across the board, and these records to be enjoyed, not make someone put themselves in financial dire straits. That said, be considerate when ordering multiple copies of a single title.
*All records coming in to Spite automatically get outer sleeves if they do not have them, or upgraded sleeves if the ones they come with are under 3 mil. 12" getting 3 mil flush fit sleeves, 10" and 7" getting 4 mil sleeves. A "Spite Bronze" courtesy for the life of the record jacket. Upgrades coming in the near future: Spite QC, Spite Silver, and Spite Gold...please stand by.
Registered as a business cooperative, Spite is working on two things, which will be elaborated upon at a later date. Provided that the distro end of things go well, the plan is to start a label within, something which has been over 20 years in the making. Being registered as a business cooperative does not mean we want to join your circle jerk of trust fund gentrifiers with cooperatives to have a wank at Meow Wolf...yes, some idiot missed the part where we represent the working class and invited us to join their collaborative of cooperatives. The only way we'd consider that is if they would bankroll us without telling us what to do with our business.