Creative Eshops from the Community

Independent record stores and labels build their identity through space, selection, and human presence. Common Ground helps these communities extend that identity online with creative Eshops that reflect their personality, not just products. This article presents a selection of stores, labels and artists, that use design, layout, and interaction to make their online shops feel like real spaces — build with Common Ground Eshop Editor.

Absorb Records — Folk & Discovery

Absorb Records was cooked up in the kitchen of a travel trailer in the high desert of Colorado many years ago. Z and K are two dear friends who have shared a passion for music and a love for that special moment of listening to something together that resonates deeply. During their travels they were struck by a number of wonderful spaces and record shops, and with Absorb they bring some of that magic back home to share. Their Hillman City location in Seattle feels like a neighborhood home for listening and discovery, and the Eshop is built with the same attentive spirit. 

The website opens with a loading page that immediately sets a tone: folk‑inspired design, cinematic textures, and a slow rhythm that encourages browsing rather than urgency. CSS supports mood rather than performance, creating a calm entry into the catalogue. This Eshop integration shows how atmosphere and storytelling can be central to the shopping experience, especially for labels rooted in community and shared moments.

Website: absorb-records.com

Big Science Records — Industrial Label & Radio

Big Science Records is a French electronic music label founded in 2019 and based in Lyon. The label is known for its industrial leanings and hybrid electronic productions. It was co-founded by Warzou, a producer, DJ, and designer with roots in dub, slow techno, UK bass, and experimental music, who also shapes the label's visual identity.

The Eshop mirrors this industrial and contemporary design inclination: a grey background forms a base for strong purple CTA elements and minimal yet expressive graphic strokes. The site clearly separates different activities — catalogue, merch, radio show links and social integrations — and delivers them with structured clarity and functional confidence. It demonstrates how a purposeful, contemporary UI can communicate both identity and efficiency for an electronic music label with multiple outputs.

Website: bigsciencerecords.eu

Dandy Records — Rare Japanese Vinyl

Paris‑based Dandy Records specializes in rare Japanese vinyl, with a focus on City‑Pop and Jazz Fusion imports. The shop’s physical and digital identities are aligned around careful selection and nuance.

The Eshop uses a java animated mouse cursor, gradient background, and very soft interaction cues, creating a gentle, relaxed experience. The product grid highlights rare finds without visual noise, and the smooth, flowing interactions support the feeling of careful curation. This site exemplifies how small UX/UI details can enhance the sense of thoughtful selection and discovery.

Website: dandyrecords.store

Peekaboo Records — Visual & Immersive

Located in Chiado, in the heart of Lisbon city centre since 2017, Peekaboo is a small shop owned by local DJ Trol2000, known for his deep involvement in Lisbon’s club and record culture. The Eshop translates this energetic identity online with blue RGB tones, bold illustrations, and a large immersive banner paired with condensed heading typography. 

The visual language communicates strong personality and presence, making the experience of digging books and records feel almost like entering the physical space. Despite the heavy visuals, navigation remains clear. Peekaboo shows how expressive graphic decisions can bridge store culture with online browsing.

Website: https://www.peekaboorecords.pt/

Legram VG — Playful Early Web

Oscar and Anaïs are the creative minds behind Legram VG, a record shop rooted in laid‑back vibes and atmospheric sound selections. Based in Lyon since 2024, they have built a store world that feels friendly, creative and full of character.

Their Eshop leans into a playful, almost early Flash‑era web design with comic‑style graphics and a creative sense of layout, representing the physical store’s energy in digital form. The design is both personal and imaginative while remaining functional, making the shopping experience unforgettable. Legram VG highlights how experimentation and nostalgia in UI can become a strong identity marker.

Website: https://www.legramvg.com/

Gimme Sound — Browsing with Character

Gimme Sound, located at 25 rue Piliers de Tutelle in Bordeaux, is a disquaire specializing in electronic music with over 12,000 records spanning House, Hip‑Hop, Disco, and Soul. Founded by Erwan (of Canal 113) and Laurent (long‑time collector), the store is a local hub with listening stations and community energy. The Eshop uses contemporary design with big corner radius, a simple color panel, and integration of a store mascot, creating a warm and accessible browsing space.

Designed in collaboration with Common Ground team, the layout handles a large catalogue while keeping focus and readability, embodying a design that feels modern without losing soul. Gimme Sound’s online space is a balance of inventory scale and character presence.

Website: https://www.gimme-sound.com/

Almost Free Services — Portfolio & Shop

Mathieu Courbier, known as Almost Free Services, is a French artist with a distinctive visual and conceptual approach to art that spans installation, print, and digital media. His online presence blends artistic portfolio with merch offerings, dissolving the line between creative output and product.

The Eshop features infinite scroll that showcases art production first, with merch integrated naturally into the flow. This layout foregrounds creative practice and positions objects as extensions of that practice rather than standalone commodities. It’s an example of how editorial and portfolio structures can redefine the Eshop experience.

Website: https://www.almostfreeservices.com/

Common Goods — Annual Records Fair

Common Goods is the Eshop for the Annual Records Fair — a collective celebration of independent music and culture. The design embraces the nature of the event with display typography, shiny animations, and unconventional composition. 

Navigation and layout feel playful, encouraging exploration over efficiency. This Eshop is designe dby Common Ground team with a new layout every year, based on a strong example of context‑specific UX that prioritizes mood and experience provided by navigation.

Website: https://goods.common-ground.io/

Vinyl Hunter — Retro Digital Navigation

Vinyl Hunter is a record cafe and hi‑fi specialist in the UK, offering an eclectic range of music old and new, and stocking audio equipment from Rega and Audio‑Technica.

The Eshop adopts a Windows 98‑inspired aesthetic with pixel art and retro colors, deliberately evoking early desktop nostalgia. The chaotic, playful interface communicates the store’s eclectic identity and technical focus, showing how retro digital references can become a defining visual language.

Website: https://www.vinyl-hunter.co.uk

Impressions Sonores — Physical Experience

Impressions Sonores is an online space dedicated to curated electronic and experimental music releases, designed to bring the tactile and visual pleasure of vinyl into the digital realm.

The website features animated black vinyl circles that respond to hover, creating a sense of motion and playfulness. Combined with glass effect panels and smooth transitions, the interface feels both immersive and dynamic. The design prioritizes exploration, encouraging users to interact with the catalogue in a tactile, almost physical way. This Eshop demonstrates how motion, layered visual effects, and interactive micro‑interactions can translate the character of a record store into a digital experience.

Website: impressions-sonores.common-ground.io

Ready to build?

Create your account now, install a theme and publish your new storefront in minutes. The full documentation is here whenever you need it: guide.common-ground.io. When you’re ready to move from exploration to growth, upgrade your look, refine your catalog, and make every release count. Learn more about the Eshop Editor from the dedicated page.