Rob Pash, of newly named Pashing Vinyl, has thinned out his own collection to sell at the Vinyl Record Fair in Griffith. Photo: Region.
Since when does buying vinyl records help a local charity feed Canberrans in need?
When those records are bought at the inaugural Vinyl Record Fair in Griffith, right next to the Griffith Shops, that’s when.
Community Services #1 Food Pantry is hosting a record fair in the Griffith Neighbourhood Hall on Sunday, 8 November, bringing together music collectors, vendors and enthusiasts from across the ACT.
Entry is free, but the local stallholders are all contributing to Community Services #1 (CS#1) to go towards its most worthy causes.
A barbecue throughout the day, along with other activities and promotions, will also help raise funds at what organisers are planning to be a fun, family friendly, community event.
The CS#1 food pantry is a community outlet for people with a genuine need or those on a limited income.
It makes good food affordable and accessible, with the food being provided by FoodBank NSW, OzHarvest, The Period Project and community donations.
In 2025-26 the pantry had roughly 3200 pantry visits and provided support to about 240 community members.
There were 94 emergency hampers supplied over that period; assistance given to 166 individuals and families through the Christmas support program; and 10 back-to-school packs for local students.
“We are delighted that the organisers of the Vinyl Record Fair are supporting Community Services #1 through this event,” the organisation’s chief executive officer Simon Bennett said.
“All funds raised for CS#1 will go to our Community Food Pantry in Narrabundah, which continues to experience high levels of demand.”
In addition to vinyl records, CDs, and DVDs on sale throughout the day, there will also be plenty of collectibles and curiosities up for grabs.; as well as some very well-priced hifi equipment.
In other words – something for everyone.
And it won’t be the usual vendors seen at record markets around town. They’re all local and some haven’t sold records at fairs before.
One such seller is Rob Pash, who will be calling his stand Pashing Vinyl.
“Don’t take my name in vain,” he laughed.
“That was a bit of fun on the side when I was setting up a payment app and it forced me to choose a business name, which I’d never even considered at all. I came up with that on the fly and it will have to do.”
Pash isn’t a professional seller, he’s just clearing out some of his own collection and jumped at the chance to be part of a community event.
His immaculately kept records span genres and eras, with some quite rare specimens for sale.
“I’m not a collector, I’m an accumulator,” he said.
“I’ve been buying long players since I was about 12.
“If record storage takes over any more of our living space at home, I can reasonably expect divorce papers to be in the mail shortly. [laughs all round].
“I just have to think about moving some records on, and a community event like this is a really fantastic way of doing that – connecting with people; connecting with the community.
“It is very, very hard to give up a lot of them, but I’m in my mid 50s and I have to be realistic about what I’m listening to these days and, you know, tastes change over time.
“Bands, artists come and go; you fall in and out of love with them and that’s a really great part of the journey too.”
Pashing Vinyl’s prices range from surprisingly great bargains to those with somewhat higher price tags on rare albums – but even those are bargains compared to what some are selling for online.
“It was an onerous task pricing them,” he said.
“I had no idea what some of them could be worth, but I had to be as realistic about the prices as I was about thinning out the collection.
“There’s something there for everybody – it’s a very eclectic mix of records.”
Griffith Neighbourhood Hall will transform into a Vinyl Record Fair on Sunday, 8 November. Photo: Region.
Canberra’s Kool N’ Krazy Records will be there also, specialising in Afro-American LPs, soul, funk, jazz, blues and RnB.
Black Velvet Records will also be there, headed by Tom Stokman who has had record stores in Kingston and Bungendore over the years.
That’s a just a small sample of the numerous stallholders who will be at the fair, which is set to be a fun day just a few steps away from the Griffiths Shops.
The Vinyl Record Fair Day is on Sunday 8 November from 10 am to 3 pm at the Griffith Neighbourhood Hall. Entry is free.
