Kunz & Waterloo Records History & Timeline
January 1973
John T Kunz - UT student - part-time job at Disc Records / Highland Mall (now ACC)
1975
Kunz promoted to manager at Disc Records
1976
Kunz promoted to manager at Zebra Records / UT Campus area
1977
Louis Karp becomes manager at Sound Warehouse (Burnet Rd)
1977
Kunz becomes Area Manager of 3 Austin Disc Records & Zebra Records stores
1980
Kunz promoted to Regional Manager over 13 Texas Disc & Zebra Record stores
1980
Karp moves to Telluride, CO
1981
Hastings buys Disc & Zebra stores - Kunz returns to be Disc/Highland Mall Mgr
April Fools Day 1982
Kunz resigns to open own store, tentatively named Eclipse Records
Karp returns and opens Waterloo Records at 221 South Lamar Blvd
April 1982
Kunz and Karp begin talks regarding cooperating as Austin's 2 new indie record stores
July 1982
Kunz shelves his own store plans, partners w/Karp to expand Waterloo Records & promote concerts
2 former chain store competitors are now indie record store partners!
1983
Waterloo in its 1st year wins the Austin Chronicle’s “Best Record Store” award!
1985
Waterloo expands again - adds video partners & VHS video rentals
1987
Karp sells Kunz his 50% to start hospital video rental stores & promote concerts
He later joins Whole Foods Market in both TX and CO, then retires in 2022.
Kunz & Karp remain close friends to this day, even over the span from TX to CO
1988
Kunz co-founds Watermelon Records label with Robert Earl Keen & Heinz Geissler
1989
Kunz expands Waterloo with move to 600 North Lamar Blvd
1990
Waterloo expands CD inventory & opens vinyl annex store (now Lululemon)
1993
KGSR debuts broadcasts CD charity series - Waterloo sells 1615 CDs, donating $5,300+
1994
Waterloo adds north room & a performance stage - vinyl annex becomes video annex
1999
Waterloo partners with Austin City Limits for joint store in new Austin airport (ABIA)
2002
Waterloo partners with ACL Festival for its festival music store
2005
Kunz helps co-found HAAM with Robin Shivers – The Health Alliance for Austin Musicians
2006
Kunz marries Kathy Marcus in a surprise wedding at the Broken Spoke, w/ the Joe Ely band on
the stage, celebrating the double vinyl, 33 1/3 Anniversary of him selling LPs in Austin & their
1st date (but it was double date w/opposite partners no less) - Marcus is also the Waterloo VP
2007
Waterloo’s 25 th Anniversary - parking lot concert with Omar & the Howlers w/ Jimmie Vaughan
2008
Video annex closed - video inventory sales absorbed by CD store
Waterloo partners w/the nation’s best record stores (CIMS) to build out a transactional webstore
April 2008
Waterloo and its indie store partners co-found Record Store Day, going semi-global year one!
2009
Record Store Day (RSD) goes global across 6 continents in just 2 years
2010
After 65+ releases, Watermelon sells to Texas Music Group, & Kunz resigns from Watermelon
Spoon debuts their “Transference” release on Waterloo’s parking lot, prepping for SXSW
Waterloo Day Party concerts in our parking lot debut during SXSW
2015
Kunz is honored w/ the music industry’s 2015 “Independent Spirit Award”, along w/ Jack White.
Waterloo partners with Honda to produce music festival tent stores in New York, Atlanta & Austin
2018
KGSR (now ACL Radio) concludes its broadcast CD/LP series with Volume 26
Total Waterloo donations over 26 years = $1,000,000+ (w/ 250,000+ CDs/LPs sold)
March 2020
Covid shutdown begins with the cancellation of SXSW ’20 – online & curbside pickup orders only
2021
Covid recovery year – baby steps as Waterloo attempts to safely return to normalcy
2022
Waterloo celebrates its 40th Anniversary winning its 40th consecutive “Best Record Store” award
in the Austin Chronicle Music Poll
Waterloo resumes FREE in-store performances w/ Ray Wylie Hubbard
2023
Waterloo celebrates RSD’23 as its most successful sales day ever over its 41 year history!
Onward!!
