Cactus Music gets creative to attract customers amid COVID-19 pandemic

HOUSTON, TX (KTRK) — Cactus Music has been in Houston for 45 years, but they’ve never seen anything like the coronavirus outbreak.

“We’ve managed to withstand some pretty harsh circumstances,” said owner Quinn Bishop. “We’ve survived tropical storms, floods and hurricanes, but this is really going to test retail.”

Cactus has been offering curbside and to-go services since they closed in mid-March. That’s allowed them to keep a limited number of staff employed, but this legendary Houston retailer has taken a big hit.

“We’re operating at a mere 20 to 25-percent of what we would normally bring in,” Bishop said. “We didn’t receive any assistance money, so we’re going to have to get a loan.”

Despite the circumstances, Cactus realizes they play an important role for local music lovers and they’ve been using social media to help sell records, gifts and more. The staff has been curating items from the store and posting them to their social media accounts. For example, they posted all of the Bob Dylan albums they had available on the singer-songwriter’s birthday earlier this month. Customers who like what they see in these posts can call the store and place an order.

“It’s been a big part of our business during this COVID-19,” he said. “We’re very engaged in normal circumstances, but we really ramped it up.”

Governor Abbott’s order allowed Cactus Music to reopen its doors to customers weeks ago, but Bishop and his employees have opted to remain closed due to safety concerns. They hope to reopen, at a limited capacity, in June.

“It’s our intention to keep rolling and stay Houston’s flagship music store for many years to come.”