The iconic Bay Area record store Rasputin Music is closing its Haight Street location, employees told SF Weekly on background. A destination for vinyl and CDs among the strip of quirky shops and restaurants, the store opened in 2013 as an expansion of the popular local chain founded by Ken Sarachan in Berkeley in 1971.
When reached by phone, a Rasputin Haight Street employee declined to comment on the reason for the closure, and did not deny that the store is closing. Christin Evans, president of the Haight Ashbury Merchants Association, told SF Weekly that sales have been down by 30 percent for retailers in the area.
Rasputin most recently closed its Union Square location on Powell Street in 2016. It has six other locations, including the original one in Berkeley. We’ve reached out to Rasputin’s business office for comment and will update this post when we hear more.
