Record Stores Now Blatantly Using Wal-Mart As A Wholesaler

We got a tip this morning from a reader who saw copies of the Eagles’ Long Road Out Of Eden at the Times Square Virgin Megastore yesterday, and a little detective work by Rolling Stone confirms: the so-called Wal-Mart “exclusive” has been spotted in the racks of other record stores, often at a substantial markup from the Sam Walton-approved price of $11.88. (Hey, they have to make some profit.)

The best part: The only store that was willing to ‘fess up to getting its inventory at the big-box store was a small shop in Nebraska, while a Virgin clerk, when asked whether or not the albums were imports, whispered to RS he “thinks they were hard to get.” Which implies either a long car ride or some weird hand-off system because the Virgin clerk didn’t want to be seen actually shopping at Wal-Mart. The albums apparently just started popping up in stores today, so what this means for Eden‘s SoundScan tallies is still up in the air; given that Wal-Mart bought those three million albums from the Eagles on a no-returns basis, though, one might suspect that the powers that be in Arkansas are a bit alarmed by the way that their low prices are having the odd effect of cannibalizing their sales.

Breaking News: “Exclusive” Wal-Mart Eagles Album Not So Exclusive [RS]