Culutre runner-up - David Lashmar

10:09am Wednesday 19th November 2003

More than 20 years after The Damned put Croydon on the music map, the launch of Croydon Records in late September gave local talent a chance to make their own records.

Croydon Records is the brain-child of Beanos’ owner and managing director David Lashmar, who has built up the Middle Street record business from a market stall he started in the early 70s.

The 59-year-old has lived in Selsdon most of his life and overseen the expansion of his second-hand record shop from its 1973 origin as Bell Hill Cassettes, into the famous purple, three-storey shop, opened in 1995, now so popular with record collectors.

“The ethos of Beanos is that we have made it a place to hang out. You don’t have to buy anything,” said Lashmar.

Croydon Records is being launched in tandem with Beanos’ sister enterprise Moon Recording Studio, giving local bands the chance to contribute to a sampler compilation album.

He says: “Croydon has a very strong music scene but you would not believe it looking at the number of live music venues. We give bands a chance to play live and have their performance recorded. We retain the rights to that performance and if they make it big, great, if not they have a record to show for their work.” But perhaps the most exciting and potentially lucrative new venture is Beanos’ new online record auction site called 10p.cd which sees albums auctioned off on Ebay for as little as 10p.

“We are putting 1,000 items on Ebay a week for auction,” says Lashmar.

“It gives collectors a chance to pick up some real bargains, and judging by response so far, will help us shift a lot of records.”