Portland, OR – CD Baby is shutting down its Portland, Oregon-based retail store.
The independent distributor is making the pivot to focus more on distribution, monetization and promotion services. As one of the largest distribution services in the world, they will continue to distribute physical products through other channels.
“CD Baby’s mission is to help artists monetize and promote their music in the best ways possible,” the Portland-based company said in a statement on its website. “In order to provide the tools and services you need to succeed in an evolving music ecosystem, we’ve made the decision to retire the CD Baby retail store on March 31st, 2020.”
The digital aggregator has been around for 20 years and have seen the change in music consumption. They report sales for their stores went from 27 percent to 3 percent of their clients’ total earnings between 2009 and 2019.
“We’re already recognized as the only distributor to have top-preferred partner status with both Spotify and Apple Music, but we’re also making it easier for you to reach new listeners, earn more money across an increasing array of channels, and opening up new territories for your music too, including the massive markets of India and China,” CEO Tracy Maddux said in a statement.
Some changes include making sure physical stock is retail-ready and to change any CD Baby store links to the Amazon Marketplace, which is how they will continue to fulfill orders.