KC staple counterculture shop 7th Heaven set to close after 50 years

7th Heaven, a record store located at 7621 Troost Avenue, is set to close after 50 years of serving the Kansas City community. // Photo by Lane Rozin

After serving the Kansas City community for half a century, record store 7th Heaven has announced that it will be closing its doors by the end of the year. 

On Sept. 30, store manager Sebastian Gonzales took to 7th Heaven’s Instagram to confirm the end of an era. Customers expressed their grief in the comment section, while also sharing their favorite memories at the shop, and wishing the owner Jan Fichman a happy retirement. 

“There’s been an intense, outpouring of grief from the community,”  Gonzales says. “Everyone I’ve talked to has said that this is the first record store they ever went to, or they bought their first bong here. We hear these fantastic stories, and people are coming in and stocking up.”

The glass door in the vestibule of 7th Heaven announces the stores closing date of Nov. 30. // Photo by Lane Rozin

Fichman opened 7th Heaven in 1974, where it debuted in a former Taco Via at 7653 Troost Ave before relocating to its current location down the street. In addition to selling new and used records, the shop also sold futons, water pipes, turquoise jewelry, used jeans, and more. 

Located at 7621 Troost Ave, 7th Heaven is best known today as a counterculture shop. From the Vinyl Underground to the Smoke Shop and Love Shop, there is a wide selection of vinyl records, CDs, cassette tapes, grinders, pipes, bongs, sex toys, and more.

“We have customers that come in every day just to spend $1.50, $3, or $4, on a pack of rolling papers, because they don’t want to go into a convenience store,” Gonzales says. “They want to come into the record store and see the people that are hanging out.”

Throughout the years, the record store has provided an outlet for artists to self-promote their work—such as hometown favorite Tech N9ne, Rich the Factor, Snoop Dogg, and more. 

Gonzales emphasized the impact the shop has had on the Black community over the decades.

“We have catered to the Black Kansas City population, basically, our entire existence,” says Gonzales. “The city’s hip-hop community thrived and was birthed in our store. The Black community is important to us, and it’s very heartbreaking that we’re going to lose that staple.”

Vinyl racks begin to empty out, while all used vinyl is currently 60% off at 7th Heaven. // Photo by Lane Rozin

Another store manger, Stone Heard, has been a recurring customer for 25 years. As a child, they would venture with their uncle to the shop to find CDs to listen to at home. 

Heard added that seeing other Black individuals in the shop has left an uplifting influence on them. 

“I saw other Black people here doing the same thing, and it was cool,” says Heard. “It was a place outside of church where I could see other Black people doing stuff. A lot of folks see this as a free and safe place. This business has definitely been supported a lot by Black people.”

Gonzales shared that he often went to the record store to be surrounded by music growing up. 

“I’ve been coming to 7th Heaven my entire life,” says Gonzales. “I saw the commercials on TV for their futons and music as a little kid. They were always on television, and they would talk about how there were three floors of cool, counterculture shit. You just had to see it.”

Last week, Gonzales half-jokingly asked Taylor Swift to purchase 7th Heaven in a video that was published on the store’s Instagram account. 

“Let’s talk some business. Help us save our business,” Gonzales says in the video.  

A vibrant mural is featured on the west side of the 7th Heaven building. // Photo by Lane Rozin

While long-time customers, new fans, and the staff of the record store are sad to see it go, they wish Fichman a successful retirement. 

“He’s been doing it for 50 years. He has a family and grandchildren,” Gonzales says. “He’s doing things the right way by giving us two months advance notice. He’s been trying to sell the business for a long time, but, unfortunately, he just hasn’t found a buyer.”

Fichman mentioned in an interview with the Kansas City Star that he plans to keep the 10,000 square-foot building, and hopes to lease it to a new business once 7th Heaven is cleared out.

According to Gonzales, 7th Heaven will be closing on Nov. 30, but is subject to change. The last day of shop also largely depends on how quickly inventory sells.  The record store will continue to sell and buy both new and old vinyl, which are also on sale. All used vinyl and CD’s are currently 60% off, while new records are 20%, and everything in the smoke shop is 50% off. Music genres range from jazz, R&B, hip-hop, rock, and more. 

“We would love people to still come in and bring us their stuff,” Gonzales says. “We want people to bring us their used records, and that’s what we hope to survive on for the next two months.”

7th Heaven is now open every day between 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., except for Sundays, when they close at 6 p.m. More updates about the store closing can be found on the stores Instagram.