On the first floor of a converted dairy estate on the Pinhoe side of Exeter, Hussar Records has quietly become one of the city’s most rewarding stops for second-hand vinyl. It is a destination shop rather than a high-street walk-in, and that slightly out-of-the-way setting is part of its character, drawing in collectors who know exactly the kind of carefully kept records they will find once they climb the stairs.
Background / History
Hussar Records is an independent, family-run business founded by Mariusz Dąbrowski, whose own collecting habit stretches back roughly two decades to a handful of early purchases that included Deep Purple’s In Rock. What began as a personal passion grew into an online record store in 2013, building a steady worldwide mail-order following over the years that followed. The physical shop in Exeter opened its doors in 2020, giving local buyers and visiting collectors a place to browse the stock in person rather than only through a screen. That dual heritage, both a long-running mail-order operation and a bricks-and-mortar shop, still shapes how the business runs today.
What You’ll Find
The stock is exclusively second-hand and genuinely deep, with well over a thousand LPs on the racks alongside good runs of 12-inch, 7-inch and 10-inch singles, plus CDs, cassettes and DVDs. Coverage stretches across more than forty genres, with particular strength in rock, metal, punk, progressive rock, new wave and alternative, balanced by solid sections for pop, jazz, electronic, soul, reggae and classical. Every record is cleaned, sound-checked and conservatively graded before it reaches the shelves, so the condition described tends to be the condition you get. A vinyl-buying service operates alongside the shop, which keeps fresh and varied stock moving through regularly.
Experience / Atmosphere
Browsing here is unhurried and methodical, helped by clear genre organisation and the reassurance that comes from knowing each sleeve has already been checked over. The first-floor space is relaxed and friendly, and a dedicated listening area lets you preview records before committing, which makes a real difference when you are weighing up an unfamiliar pressing. Mariusz and the team are approachable and knowledgeable without being pushy, happy to talk through a title or point you towards something you might have missed. The atmosphere rewards collectors who like to dig, while remaining welcoming to anyone just starting to build a collection.
Why Visit
- A large, regularly refreshed selection of second-hand vinyl across more than forty genres
- Every record cleaned, sound-checked and conservatively graded before sale
- A listening area to preview pressings in person before you buy
- Friendly, genuinely knowledgeable owner and staff
- A long-established vinyl-buying service that keeps stock turning over
- Worldwide shipping and counter collection for online orders
Summary
Hussar Records pairs the breadth of a seasoned mail-order operation with the pleasures of a proper browsing shop. The combination of carefully cleaned and graded stock, honest condition reporting, a wide genre spread and a calm first-floor setting makes it well worth seeking out on the edge of Exeter. Whether you are chasing a specific pressing or simply enjoy losing an hour in the racks, it is a shop that respects both the records and the people who buy them.
