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The Pittsburgh-based pressing plant is expanding into Philadelphia as U.S. vinyl record sales surpassed $1 billion last year.
The Pittsburgh-based pressing plant is expanding into Philadelphia as U.S. vinyl record sales surpassed $1 billion last year.
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Hellbender Vinyl has opened up a new location in North Philadelphia after acquiring a pressing plant in the city’s Lawncrest neighborhood.
The Pittsburgh-based record-pressing company shipped its first order in 2023, offering recording artists and labels direct access to vinyl manufacturing.
The expansion from Pittsburgh is a result of the acquisition of Softwax Record Pressing, formerly based in the Bond Building, a converted bread factory. Co-founder and CEO Matt Dowling called the opportunity “serendipitous” and said operating on both sides of the state connects two cities with deep manufacturing roots.
“Philadelphia is so central for the East Coast, and in a lot of ways, it has become the most important East Coast city in music in general,” Dowling said. “That’s probably very fair to say for both big music and independent music … Pittsburgh, it’s this doorway to the Midwest, and so a lot of Midwest people end up hearing about it.”
For project manager Benjamin Schurr, a musician and third-generation Philadelphian, the pressing plant provides another avenue for the city’s music scene to grow and expand.
“There’s always been music here, that’s not anything new,” Schurr said. “As long as people have been here, they’ve been making really awesome, viable art … The fact that there is now a place where you can actually manufacture records is really, really incredible.”
Demand for vinyl records continues to surge, according to a March report from the Recording Industry Association of America. U.S. sales grew for the 19th straight year and surpassed $1 billion in 2025, driven largely by younger listeners and the appeal of collectible, physical media.
That momentum is playing out locally. As demand rises, Hellbender is adding staff at its North Philadelphia location. Returning to the city after nearly a decade away, Schurr said the music scene now feels like it’s growing “at a different level” than before.
“I was like, ‘Whoa,’ this is what Seattle must have felt like in the late ‘80s before Nirvana. … That’s a really cliché thing, but it’s true,” Schurr said. “That was a thing that Matt and I definitely talked kind of at length about, and being like, if there was ever a time to do that, it would be now. It’s really exciting to be living in Philadelphia now.”
Plant manager Nick Landstrom handles day-to-day pressing operations and oversees quality control. He said a good amount of work comes via word of mouth, as more artists hear about Hellbender’s operations. Some notable artists who have vinyl made through the company include Wiz Khalifa and Victoria Monét.
“Musicians more than any other demographic are immune to marketing,” Landstrom said. “They don’t believe anything unless they hear it from somebody that they trust.”
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He said that has led to the company’s slow and steady growth, which is ultimately why it was able to expand into North Philly.
“If [artists] work with Hellbender, you get a dedicated project manager who’s going to work with you; he’s going to update you at every step,” Landstrom said. “If there’s any issue, we have full transparency about it and work with you, which is in contrast to a lot of the industry.”
Record stores across the country, including many in the Philadelphia metro area, will celebrate Record Store Day on Saturday, April 18.
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Cory Sharber is a general assignment reporter for WHYY News.
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