Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel Lightner and Ted Stern.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Daniel and Ted. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.

Ted and I have both worked in Book/Music retail for a lot of our professional life. We met, about four years ago, working at a local used bookstore in Fort Worth. Ted and his wife had just moved here from Austin. We were at lunch one day, and I mentioned how much I’d wanted to open an independent record store for years, but had never found the right partner. He immediately expressed the same ambition, and so we were off! We began acquiring collections of quality used records, books & videos. We also started an online presence. We had always felt that the Near Southside/Magnolia area of Fort Worth would be the perfect demographic for our physical store. We signed a lease with a new development at 1455 W Magnolia Ave. & opened business on Dec. 8th, 2017.

Has it been a smooth road?

We’ve been pretty lucky. Of course, financing for a new untried business is always a struggle, but we had some help from people who believed in the vinyl revolution. The other struggle was waiting for our building, which was a new construction, to be finished. We had signed our lease in March of 2017 with the expectation of moving in before December. Construction delays & problems with the city prevented that but, fortunately, our landlords had a recently vacated empty building, just a block from our present location, that we could use. It wasn’t perfect, but it allowed us to start making a presence on the street for Holiday shopping & we ended up being there for six months! We finally moved into our permanent location in July of 2018 and had a Grand Opening on July 14th, which was a big success!

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Panther City Vinyl – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.

Panther City Vinyl, as the name implies, specializes in quality used & new vinyl records. We are known, even though we are a relatively small store, for having a great selection at reasonable prices. I think we are most proud of carrying great records from almost every genre of music. We’ve had more than one customer remark that our inventory is small, but extremely well curated with great titles.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?

Fort Worth is a great town. People are friendly and it’s got a big city feel, but still relatively easy to get around. There’s a lot of growth in the Near Southside/Magnolia area & it is quickly becoming one of the hippest areas in town. As a matter of fact, the American Planning Association (APA) recently named Fort Worth’s West Magnolia Avenue one of this year’s 5 Great Streets. There’s still a lack of good vegetarian restaurants (Ted’s a vegetarian) & we need more mid-size (like the Granada & Kessler in Dallas) music venues.

Contact Info:

Address: 1455 W Magnolia Ave., Suite 113, Fort Worth, TX 76104

1455 W Magnolia Ave., Suite 113, Fort Worth, TX 76104 Website: panthercityvinyl.com

panthercityvinyl.com Phone: 682-252-8441

682-252-8441 Email: panthercityvinyl@gmail.com

panthercityvinyl@gmail.com Instagram: Panther City Vinyl (@panthercityvinyl)

Panther City Vinyl (@panthercityvinyl) Facebook: Panther City Vinyl

Panther City Vinyl Other: https://www.discogs.com/seller/panther_city_vinyl



Image Credit:

Velton Hayworth

Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.