Moncton store offers a trip back in time

From gumball machines, to arcade classics, to rows of vinyls and videos, Spin-It Records & Video in Moncton, N.B., helps turn an everyday shopping experience into a trip back in time.

“I just took my childhood bedroom and I threw it into a store and hoped for the best,” said owner Patrick Parisè.

The main differences between his childhood room and his store is the number of arcade games and the size.

He first opened his doors back in 2001 and while trends have changed over the years, Parisè has found a way to keep all the aspect he loves, including movie rentals.

“We’ve got one of the biggest selections of movies for rent in Canada,” he said.

“Probably the world really, just by default, because everybody else is getting out of it, but we’ve got over 40,000 titles.”

He adds that for years the store would bring in any movie that a customer asked for which has really helped grow its collection.

“If you add up all the movies, on all the major streamers, we have more movies than all of them put together, so there’s a lot of movies that you can find here that you can’t find anywhere else,” he said.

While COVID-19 impacted the amount of people who still utilized the service, officials say renting a movie offers an experience that you just can’t find anywhere else.

“I think the younger generation does enjoy kind of being able to talk about movies and being suggested things based on what they like by someone who’s kind of seen more movies,” said employee Ryan White, who has been with the store for seven years.

“It can be a positive experience, something that’s not quite present when you’re at home streaming.”

He adds that he usually spends more time searching then actually watching when trying to pick something online, and going to the store helps people be more decisive and gives them more options. 

“A lot of the videos we have for rent are either unavailable for rent on regular streaming services or they are just less so available,” he said.

“That being said, I think just being exposed to the extra library of content is a shock for some people.”

Spin-It Records & Videos has movies from the silent era to this week's new releases, helping to guarantee that there is something for everyone.

Parisè says while video rentals aren’t the most popular aspect of the store right now, there’s a good reason he’s not ready to give up on this part of his dream.

“I’m a stubborn kind of fella and I have young children and I want them to grow up in a world where video stores exist because it was such a huge part of my childhood – going to the video store on a Friday night, smells like popcorn when you walk in, talk to the clerk, talk to the other patrons about movies that they’ve watched lately and they’ll recommend stuff to you,” he said.

“Just the whole experience of it that, unfortunately, with streaming services, doesn’t exist.”

Going to the movie rental store on a Friday night is a fond memory shared within the four walls of Spin-It Records & Video.

“Getting some movies to bring home was always a tradition for my family, so it’s nice to be able to up keep that here at the store,” said White.

While thousands of movies take up the first half of the store, it’s definitely not the only option for customers.

“Definitely what keeps the store open is the resurgence of vinyl records. People are very interested and they’ve gone up in value and I’ve been stock piling them for 20 years,” said Parisè.

The store offers something for everyone including unique collectables, gaming systems, CDs, and knowledgeable staff to offer suggestions.

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