Slow Boat Records

Slow Boat Records is Wellington, New Zealand’s longest running independent record store. Situated at 183 Cuba Street in the vibrant and eclectic Te Aro area of the capitol’s downtown CBD, it has long been a favourite of the discerning music fan (as well as the odd celeb – The Beastie Boys, Johnny Marr, The Foo Fighters, Radiohead, Oasis, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Chris Isaak have all shopped with us, whilst Beck was very disappointed that we were closed, and Evan Dando seems to make us his first port of call!), with a wide array of CD’s, vinyl LP’s, 78’s and 45’s, posters, tee shirts and DVD’s.

Our staff are all music fans who collectively possess a vast knowledge of all types of music – from rock’n’roll, pop, blues, metal and soul, to indie, reggae, jazz, electronica, hip hop, dub, world music, NZ music and everything between and beyond – if you are looking for something a little out of the ordinary, Slow Boat should be your first port of call.

For the last couple of years we have also been selling online through the vast sellers resources that are Netsounds (prices in GB pounds), GEMM (prices in USD) and MusicStack (prices in USD). This gives overseas collectors the opportunity to peruse our online stocks, and to take advantage of the many rare and unique items we have gathered during the store’s 17-year history, including many signed and promo items, as well as NZ only releases, in addition to generally cheaper prices than many overseas sellers. Our stocks are constantly being added to and updated.

If you are concerned about the distance your goods will have to travel, DON’T BE!!! We airmail a large volume of goods to the US, UK and all over the world each week, and are constantly receiving messages from delighted customers telling us they have received their orders, often within a week, and that it often takes longer for them to get stuff from across town! Our philosophy is that once you have paid for your order, it should be shipped to you ASAP, well packed in custom mailers to preserve your music during its journey to you. Furthermore, all purchases are backed by our unconditional money back guarantee.

We receive regular orders of new vinyl and CD’s each week, and we are happy to try to order anything you want, and, providing we can source it, will try to get it for you as quickly and reasonably as possible.

Wants lists too, are always welcome.

Slow Boat is also always happy to look at LP’s, 45’s, CD’s and DVD’s that you wish to sell. However, it is probably pertinent to offer some parameters:

• Goods need to be in excellent condition, free of scratches and with intact, undamaged covers, and with all relevant inserts and packaging.
• We are very interested in great condition vinyl by New Zealand 60’s/70’s rock bands; original pressings by bands who still command significant interest (The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix etc); collections of specialist music genres – blues, folk, country, reggae, jazz, soul, indie, metal; 7” singles and picture sleeve EP’s; interesting/ arthouse DVD’s, unique memorabilia…
• As a general rule of thumb, we do not buy classical, opera, easy listening, light classics, or big band LP’s. As we have a huge backup of common titles by big selling artists, we are likely to leave these also. We also largely steer clear of dance vinyl. We no longer buy either cassette tapes or VHS video cassettes.
• What we pay for goods is entirely dependent on their desirability, scarcity and condition. We understand that we pay the best prices in town for quality goods, and we will always pay more if you wish to trade for store credit, which can be a great way of turning your unwanted music into something more to your taste.
• There is a buyer on every day bar Sunday. We can generally appraise your goods on the spot; if we are busy we will take a number and call you when we have come up with a price. For larger collections, we can arrange to come and view the goods in your home.

What our customers say:

“…Amazingly fast shipping from NZ to the UK!!!! AAA+ service! Thanks.”

“…Friendly and fast international service. Excellent communication throughout transaction. Quality packaging of vinyl record for international shipping. Highly recommended for Aussie & NZ collectables. A star seller.”

“…The record is as “immaculate” as you stated in the description. It’s a beauty! Thanks for the great service, Slow Boat.”

“…This boat ain’t slow at all. Thanks for the sought-after CD.”

“…Excellent, personal service. Promptly delivered a wonderful, correctly graded LP.”

“…Anything but a Slowboat – NZ to UK in under a week! First rate product and service 5 Stars (Excellent).”

“…Item was better than described. It was shipped quickly from NZ all the way to the SWEDEN. SUPER SELLER. I come back again soon.”

“…It’s incredible that I can find the goods I need & get better service from the other side of the world – I had no idea you were in NZ!! Superb service – thanks again.”

“…You guys kick ass! …thank you for making my day, year, decade; hell, making my century, so far.”