The Exclusive Company

General information

As America's Oldest Full-line Independent Record Store, The Exclusive Company has seen the music industry transition from 78s to digital downloads. Prior to opening the doors of its first retail location in 1956, The Exclusive Company’s founder and current president, Mr. G., got his entrepreneurial start in the early ‘50s by selling records out of the trunk of his car and at flea markets. A few short years later, in 1956, Mr. G. opened the first Exclusive Company location on Main Street in West Bend, WI.

Since all the major distributors had offices and warehouses in Milwaukee, Mr. G. would drive from West Bend early on Saturday mornings to the warehouses to stock up on all the newest LPs. Soon thereafter, portable audio equipment was introduced at The Exclusive Company, like a Columbia portable turntable that was modestly priced at $29.99. Expanding the inventory even more, Mr. G. decided to begin stocking full stereo systems such as the latest and greatest console stereos along with televisions.

With the success of the West Bend store, in 1957 The Exclusive Company traveled north to the bustling Main Street of Oshkosh, WI to open its second store and eventually its corporate offices. After opening stores in West Bend and Oshkosh additional stores followed during the boom of the compact disc. During these times the stores thrived as The Exclusive Company sold 1 out of every 700 CDs sold in America as people traded in their LPs and cassettes for the newer technology. This period of time was also the pinnacle of The Exclusive Company’s legendary midnight sales that garnered the attention of national media. One of the more notable midnight sales was for the ‘93 release of Pearl Jam’s debut follow-up, “Versus.” During that midnight sale, crowds swelled at Madison’s State Street store, located in the middle of the University of Wisconsin campus, to the point where the store’s front windows broke due to the hundreds of people who were sardined inside while trying to grab the newest release by Eddie Vedder & Co.

The Exclusive Company currently has 7 locations throughout Wisconsin in Appleton, Green Bay, Greenfield, Oshkosh, West Bend, Janesville and on Milwaukee's East Side. All of our stores carry new and pre-owned music and movies along with the resent addition of pop-culture accessories, books, gifts and novelty items. In addition, our stores in Oshkosh, West Bend, Green Bay and Appleton also carry DJ equipment, car and home audio, and all the newest high definition televisions.

The Exclusive Company has always been the premier place for your entertainment needs because of our overall low prices, vast selection of new and pre-owned CDs, DVDs, Blu-Ray, Video Games & Vinyl plus books and pop-culture accessories one can’t find just anywhere. The Exclusive Company also has a stellar group of employees, we call our team members, who are ready to give you the type of guest service you deserve. Our team members have incredible knowledge across the musical board, and our management team alone has nearly 200 years, combined, of music buying experience. Not only does our team strive to help our guests locate their desired title or product within the store, but we’ll special order anything still in print at no extra charge!

The Exclusive Company looks forward to many more years of being the destination in Wisconsin for music, movies, games, accessories, and pre-owned! Now as Mr. G. has famously bellowed over the airwaves into the ears of generations of Wisconsin residents, "Say it with me!"