My kids have no appreciation for record stores. They strictly consume music via digital channels and have never purchased a compact disc.
When I was a teenager, record stores were vital. My weekends would revolve around trips downtown and I would visit Sam the Record Man, A&A and HMV at 333 Yonge Street, not necessarily in that order. The store with the lowest price for the disc I was buying would get my business.
I have many good memories of visiting HMV at 333 Yonge, sampling albums at the listening stations and digging through new hip-hop in the basement.