After six years in business, Vinyl Me, Please (VMP) was in trouble. The company was losing in excess of $1 million per year and needed help. Thankfully for VMP, help arrived in the form of Lloyd Starr.
With a background in executive leadership and software development, Starr joined VMP in 2019 and implemented changes that shifted the company’s course. He instituted a successful price increase, cost rationalization and team optimization initiative that put the company on an immediate and dramatic path to success, the company said. Next, Starr took measures to recover and modernize VMP’s digital platform and systems integrations that were crashing the website monthly and slowing progress. Last year, Starr introduced a new customer care program focused on the record collector that both reduced overhead and improved retention.
“Since hiring Lloyd, the company has doubled top line growth while improving EBITA by over 150%,” the company said. “His ability to create structures that drive clarity of focus, accountability and trust is unmatched, and VMP is positioned well for the future due to his leadership.”
VMP exists to create a deeper connection to music for all. The company’s leaders are firm believers that vinyl is the best medium for creating that connection. “We take time getting to know the stories behind every record, listening to test pressings and reviewing art before production even begins,” the company said. “We don’t just do this because it’s our job, we do it because we absolutely love vinyl and all that goes into it. Our mission is what compels us to celebrate and champion the culture, history and art of great albums. We would never expect you to love everything that we release, but we promise you’ll find something here that is new to you and deepens your relationship with music.”
Starr brings two decades of experience in the music industry to his role as VMP’s president and COO. Starr previously held a similar role at Beatport, where he helped improve the company’s valuation by seven times. He has experience in direct-to-consumer e-commerce, music distribution and rights, art and culture, education and telemedicine.
“I find it energizing to work in music with creative, passionate and talented people,” Starr said. “I honor the people who came long before us and hold gratitude for the individuals in today’s community. As long as I get to continue to influence this community positively, I hope the community influences me back.”
Outside the business world, Starr has 18 years of experience in martial arts, earning a second-degree blackbelt. He’s also been an endurance runner for 30 years, recently finishing first overall in a 10K race. He’s been married for 15 years and has two children and two dogs.
“He is the type of leader who knows it’s about the journey and not just the destination,” Starr’s team said. “With an unbreakable focus, Lloyd operates with a spirit of empathy and kindness, investing in the business, network and the people around him. He believes each individual’s self-care is paramount to their ability to perform, grow and stay creative. He also demonstrates that great success stands on a foundation of failure, how you respond to it and what you choose to do differently moving forward. Lloyd invests his whole self fully committed and loyal to our purpose.”
