Piccadilly Records.(THE INSIDER)

Manchester's northern quarter is a record shopper's paradise, with eight music stores tucked into the space of a few hundred square metres, taking in everything from Fat City's exceptional hip hop selection to Vinyl Exchange's treasure trove of second-hand vinyl.

But even in such hallowed ground, Piccadilly Records, last month named Best Independent Store at the 2006 Music Week Awards, stands out, thanks to its superlative selection of music and friendly staff.

Not that it has been an easy ride. Founded in 1978, Piccadilly Records began life as Marshall's Record Centre, before being bought by local white goods retailer Edwin P Lees, who gave it its present name.

The store's current incarnation dates from 1990, when the existing ownership of Philippa Jarmin, Darryl Mottershead and Laura Kennedy, plus the since-departed John Kerfoot, took over. Under their direction, the shop flourished; however, the 1996 IRA Manchester bombing caused a shortage of real estate in the city centre, triggering a rise in rents that forced Piccadilly Records into its present location, just to the north of Manchester's main shopping drag.

In common with many of the UK's best-performing independent stores, Piccadilly sells a selection of music--from Norwegian disco to "niptronica" --that most generalist retailers would balk at. Furthermore, this impressive range is represented in full on the store's successful internet mail-order site, which features almost 40,000 releases, all with a short description.

"We are booming ...