How Frankie Goes to Hollywood Sparked a Record-Collecting Obsession That Never Stopped

It began with two friends chasing different versions of Relax. Forty years later, that obsession has grown into a 20,000‑square‑foot hunt for rare pressings, Japanese imports, promos, test pressings and records collectors didn’t know existed.

There’s a moment when buying records turns into collecting them.
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It happens when you realize the copy on your shelf isn’t the only one. There’s an earlier pressing. A Japanese issue. A promo. A different sleeve. A 12-inch mix you’ve never seen. Maybe even a test pressing that was never meant to reach the public.

“Which one do I own?”

Robert and Julian discovered that moment through Frankie Goes to Hollywood.

In the early 1980s, the childhood friends became obsessed with the endless variations of ZTT’s 12-inch remixes. One version of Relax led to another. In 1985, they paid US$27 (£20) for a 16‑minute remix. Then they found another copy for US$9.50 (£7).

Most people see two copies of the same song. Collectors see the beginning of a rabbit hole.

Robert and Julian went down it — and never really came back out.
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Today, that hunt fills more than 20,000 square feet of warehouse space in Kent, England, packed with original pressings, Japanese imports, promos, white labels, test pressings, picture discs and memorabilia.
It’s called RareVinyl.

“No matter how well you think you know the records you collect, there’s probably another version out there.”

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Before Discogs, Finding Rare Records Was Different

Today, you can hunt for a rare pressing without leaving the couch.

In the 1980s, you had to go looking.

Record shops. Fairs. Magazines. Other collectors.

Robert and Julian bought records wherever they could and advertised their finds in Record Collector magazine. Their friend Cathryn eventually left her banking job to join them, forming Esprit.

The ads grew with the inventory. By the late ’80s and into the ’90s, Esprit had become Record Collector’s largest advertiser — sometimes filling more than 10 pages with typed listings.

No photos. No search bar. No algorithm. Just pages of records.
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You scanned them artist by artist, hoping something would jump out.

“There it is.”

That feeling hasn’t changed.

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Then Vinyl Nearly Disappeared

As the hunt moved online, Esprit experimented with Compuserve before launching eil.com — Esprit International Limited.

Then vinyl collapsed.

CDs took over. Shops closed. Collections were sold off. For a while, records looked like the past, not the future.

Robert, Julian and Cathryn kept going.

Eventually, the cycle reversed. Vinyl returned — and so did something more interesting:

the collector mentality.

Original pressings mattered again. So did labels, matrices, inserts, coloured vinyl, promos, Japanese editions and all the tiny differences that turn two copies of the same album into completely different finds.

In 2022, RareVinyl.com became the company’s new storefront.
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The technology changed. The obsession didn’t.

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Then You See Where the Records Ended Up

What began with two friends chasing Frankie Goes to Hollywood 12-inch singles now spans 20,000 square feet across four sites, with a team of around 30 people. Their buying network even reaches Hiroshima, Japan — a detail that should immediately grab anyone who’s fallen down the Japanese pressing rabbit hole.
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And then there’s the inventory.

Original pressings. Japanese imports. Promos. White labels. Picture discs. Test pressings. Box sets. Autographs. Records from countries and decades collectors obsess over.
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Twenty thousand square feet isn’t impressive because it’s big.

“What’s hiding in there?”

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This Is Where Collectors Get Into Trouble

The rabbit hole begins when you’re no longer looking for another copy.

You’re looking for the copy.

A first pressing. A Japanese edition with the obi. A promo never sold commercially. A withdrawn sleeve. A rare 12-inch mix. A test pressing made before the final version hit the shops.

RareVinyl has handled some serious examples:

• A 1957 first US deep‑groove mono pressing of Tenor Conclave on Prestige, with the W. 50th Street label and RVG in the runout.
• A Kate Bush Experiment IV 7-inch test pressing.
• An official Oasis promotional box designed like a Vox amplifier, reportedly limited to around 100.

These aren’t records you go looking for. They’re records you discover exist.

And that’s worse.
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You search an artist you think you know and suddenly there’s a Japanese issue you’ve never seen, a promo you didn’t know was released, or an obscure 12-inch that somehow escaped you for decades.

“Don’t you already own that album? Just not that version.”

If that makes perfect sense to you, you’re already wondering what’s in the warehouse.

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But Would You Buy a Grail You Couldn’t Hold?

​Buying collectible vinyl online has a challenge: you can’t pull the record from its sleeve, angle it toward the light or check the runout yourself.

And once you’re hunting specific pressings, details matter.

RareVinyl uses the Record Collector Magazine grading system and says most listings fall between Excellent and Mint unless stated otherwise.

But collectors still do what collectors do:

Read everything.

Check catalogue numbers, countries, years, condition.

Confirm inserts, obis, variations.
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Sometimes the smallest detail is the entire reason you want that copy.

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​A Warehouse Is Really Just a Very Large Crate

Seeing all those records brings the story back to where it started.

Robert and Julian weren’t trying to build a 20,000‑square‑foot operation in 1985. They were collectors chasing different versions of records they loved.

The scale changed. The behaviour didn’t.

You look for one record. Something else catches your eye. You notice another pressing — different country, different year, different label.

You didn’t know that version existed. Now you need to know why.

And suddenly you’ve forgotten what you originally came looking for.

It’s the same thing that happens in a good record shop.
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The crate is just considerably bigger.

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Don’t Search for an Album

If you’re curious about RareVinyl, here’s how to explore it:

Don’t search for an album you want.

Search for the artist you collect.

The Smiths. Joy Division. New Order. Depeche Mode. Oasis. The Beatles. Miles Davis. John Coltrane.

Whoever your weakness is.

Then look beyond the album titles.

Countries. Years. Promos. 12-inch singles. Japanese pressings. Test pressings.

See where the search takes you.
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Because after more than 40 years of digging, the most interesting record you find may not be the rare pressing that’s been on your want list for years.

“A version you didn’t know existed until five minutes ago.”

That’s the danger of a good dig.

And why collectors never really stop.

Robert and Julian discovered it through Frankie Goes to Hollywood more than four decades ago.

They’re still digging. The rest of us are still looking.
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What’s the one record — or exact pressing — you’re still hoping to find?

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Keep Digging

The RareVinyl story started with two collectors looking for different versions of records they loved. More than four decades later, the hunt is still going.
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Explore more of the people and places behind record collecting through Record Store Stories and Collector Stories.

Keep Hunting

Looking for something harder to find? Browse rare pressings, promos, Japanese releases and other collectible records through RareVinyl.

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Disclosure: Some links on Vinyl Vibes are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you buy something through them. It never affects what I write or the records I recommend.