Local Profile: Tiffany Minx

Enter Apop Records, a Wunderkammern of Exotic Sounds, Curio Publications, and Psychotronic Cinema! Wunder-what? you might ask. Yes, Apop Records truly is a “wonder chamber” or “cabinet of curiosities.” It also happens to be home of business owner, Tiffany Minx. Minx established Apop Records with business partner, Dustin Newman, in the unassuming town of Columbia, MO in 2004. Specializing in the realms of sub/counter/fringe culture, avant garde & experimental music/cinema, obscure literature, and contemporary wonders, Apop has remained a vital part of the Cherokee St. community since their move to St. Louis in 2007. I had an opportunity to catch up with Tiffany and discuss Apop Records’ Past, Present, and Future.

Why did you choose to move Apop Records to Cherokee St?

Tiffany:

Even though Dustin had lived in St. Louis before, I don’t think either of us had a really good sense of where the right place would be for the shop. Delmar, to me, continues to be one of the only actually flourishing areas for independent business (this of course, discounting Clayton and CWE for obvious yuppie-laden reasons) but we knew that even if we could afford it, we didn’t want to be on Delmar. We wanted to be somewhere more music oriented and DIY; or somewhere else that wasn’t already branded with an image.
Many of our friends lived in South City; the shows we attended when visiting were at SC locales (Radio Cherokee, Lemp, CBGBs); and in general, it seemed a more down to earth neighborhood with a lot of potential and interesting activity.

Because the once prominent commercial district had been in such a dormant state–except, of course, the active Mexican community that really pioneered business here after the street’s initial decay–the existing infrastructure and reasonable rents/property prices encouraged opportunity for those of us who lacked the capital backing of larger businesses but could compensate with a unique vision and determination.

Could we do better on Delmar or S Grand? Likely. The burden of taxing all one’s resources running a small business is further compounded by the fact that anyone who opens shop on Cherokee also takes on the job of street promoter and community revitalizer, which can be pretty overwhelming and disappointing at times. Since we’ve opened, we’ve seen more than a dozen of one-of-a-kind businesses and shops open on Cherokee — shops that would make a killing in better ‘hoods, but still struggle mainly due to lack of foot traffic and city awareness of the street. Yet, only one of these businesses has thus gone under, and considering how much turn over you see on Delmar, well, I think that’s a testament to the exceptional work ethic and fierce determination of entrepreneurs and organizers here.

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This entry was written by Josh Levi, posted on March 3, 2010 at 12:00 am, filed under Local Profile and tagged , , . Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.