$40.00
Update: Madhatter Music has since closed for business.
A walk through the downtown streets of Bowling Green is not complete until you visit one of the more unique record stores in Northwest Ohio, Madhatter. "It's gonna be the kind of place you either get it or you don't," owner Keith Bergman said. "It'll seem like a weird dingy little hell-hole, or it'll seem like the place you've been looking for all your life."
Madhatter is located at 143 E Wooster St., just east of the main Street intersection, The store was opened in 1988 by Billy Hanway and Ed Cratty, then purchased by Jim Cummer before Bergman purchased the store in 2006.
Bergman said he intends to continue the traditions that have made the record store a vital part of the community. "I think the overall vibe of the store has stayed pretty remarkably consistent for the last 19 years," Bergman said. "It's a vibe of letting people be comfortable with what they like. It's more of a home place where people can come and feel comfortable." He makes a deliberate effort to avoid stuffiness and an impersonal atmosphere, and the orange cat - named Orange Cat - walking around is a friendly reminder.
Though Bergman identifies the store as rock and roll, a wide range of musical genres are available on the shelves. "[Competing with chain stores] makes you focus on the things they don't carry, you find your niche is to go the extra mile to really take care of the people you have," Bergman explained. "Cause you know the top 40 people aren't really going to be beating down your door anymore."