I very much miss the record store experience even though I have limited need/desire for physical media.
The need is for a place to go, a thing to do, that feeds into my interests, Even a record store doesn’t exactly do that anymore, even though there isn’t a better model right now.
So, my thought is, records stores need to find a way to join the 21st century rather than cater to the dinosaurs until we all turn into petroleum.
To me, a 21st century equivalent would have physical media available, but would be more about the connections between people that otherwise don’t get to happen. Ideally a 21st century experience would almost be like a cafe - with some food and beverages, some element of a Japanese vinyl bar, some elements of sharing music, possibly even some elements of used/new gear. Friday night and weekend scheduled events as ice-breakers. Make it the destination of the day, not the place to stop on the way somewhere. If I ran it, it would also be the best hash bar (i.e. dispensary) in town. Imagine the music/weed pairings!
It would also sell downloads. You can take your music home on a USB stick or be emailed a link to DL later. Or you can just earmark the music you heard that you like for later exploration through your online account or mobile app with the store. It should just integrate with your Spotify or Qobuz account.
The challenge is, those of us who would understand this vision are probably in income brackets too high to be the entrepreneur who does it.