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“It’s not much of a challenge being specialist online online is great for specialism,” Juno co-founder Richard Atherton explains. Where the site seems to differ from countless rivals that have fallen by the digital wayside, however, is that despite all the necessary diversification, it has managed to maintain an air of specialism and genuine interest in the products it sells.

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The nearly two decades since the site’s launch have seen Juno branch out beyond its original vinyl and CD remit into downloads-via the Juno Download sub-brand-along with DJ gear and accessories.

Since launching online in 1996-originally as a dance-music information resource, although it quickly expanded into commercial endeavors-Juno has done a fine job of acting as a relatable face amongst the anonymized world of online retail. UK-based store Juno Records is an example of one such establishment. Sure, faceless behemoths like iTunes and Amazon might dominate the download market, and Beatport might remain the number-one place to grab EDM bangers and celebrity DJ charts, but there are sites that fully embrace the historically personal ethos of underground dance music. While it’s easy to be down on this idea, the situation is not all doom and gloom. These days, it’s easier and often cheaper to buy music-be it vinyl or download-online, and there’s no reason that one can’t become a dance-music aficionado or accomplished DJ without ever setting foot in an actual real-world record store. And while these meticulously curated, specialized stores still exist the world over, they are no longer the necessary entry points into the dance-music community they once were. These specialist stores acted as hubs for DJs and in many cases give birth to genres themselves it’s impossible to discuss a history of dubstep, for instance, without mentioning Big Apple Records-the small South London store that counted Skream and Hatcha amongst its employees. It’ll almost surely involve a pilgrimage to some small record store in their nearest city, where they’d stand by listening decks to hear stacks 12″s recommended by staff members, or perhaps dig through badly organized crates to seek out rarities that simply weren’t available any other way. Speak to any DJ or dance-music fan over the age of 30 and they’ll likely recall a very similar account of their first experiences buying dance music. Yet the shift to online has altered dance music in a more personal and specific way. Where fans once hunted down releases and cherished their collections, music has now largely been transformed into something to be downloaded en masse and allowed to sit unlistened on some forgotten hard drive. On the downside, illegal downloading has crippled record sales and music has, for many, lost its value entirely. It virtually goes without saying that the internet has changed music-without exaggeration, it’s a fair assertion that the past two decades have seen the entire concept of music consumption completely deconstructed and rearranged.

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In advance of this Saturday’s Record Store Day happenings around the globe, XLR8R has put together a week-long series of features devoted to taking a closer look at some of our favorite record-selling outlets from around the world.