Lewis Peterson has been training volunteers to work shifts at the store.
Four Star Video Cooperative, Madison’s last dedicated video rental outlet, has moved to a new, smaller location at 459 Gilman St., just around the corner from the space it occupied on North Broom Street.
Founded in 1985 as Four Star Video Heaven, the store became an employee-owned cooperative in 2014. Though the owners dropped the “Heaven” from its name, it remains a paradise for local movie lovers who revel in its collection of 25,000 titles, ranging from blockbusters to cult obscurities to silent era favorites.
Last April, three of the owners (who also constituted the majority of the staff) announced they were moving into different occupations. The only owner who chose to stay on is Lewis Peterson, who assumed the title of operations manager. At that time, the store hours were cut from 12 hours a day, seven days a week to eight hours a day, six days a week.
A series of fundraisers, including film screenings and a crowdfunding campaign on Indigogo, raised $4,500 for the relocation, which took place Dec.1. The remainder of the necessary funds were provided through investors.
“Other than the location,” Peterson says via email, “the major changes are the volunteers coming in and being a big part of the business model.” He has recruited a half dozen volunteers who share a passion for film to help run the store.
The volunteers are learning the basics of working the counter and stocking the shelves. Peterson says more positions need to be filled; in particular he is looking for a social media and marketing guru. “Once we are able to train enough volunteers into our system that they feel comfortable operating the store without me there, we will re-evaluate the finances and see what would be best for the store’s longevity,” says Peterson.
But, is a brick-and-mortar video store necessary in the age of instant access? Or is Four Star an exercise in nostalgia? Peterson notes that DVDs offer a higher quality picture, and often include extras and special features. They are also transportable; if you download a movie, you can’t necessarily bring it to a friend’s house.
Most important, a collection of DVDs is not subject to the whims of the marketplace. “The advantage of physical media is it’s not at the mercy of whatever corporate entity owns the rights at a given moment,” says Peterson. Despite its reputation as a place where you can find anything, the internet can lose things with little or no warning.
“Streaming is becoming more and more compartmentalized as every rights holder is trying to squeeze value over what they have,” says Peterson. A studio or a site can put a freeze on a property, making it hard for audiences to find their favorite movies. The recent arrival of Disney+ is the perfect example of one company acquiring properties (not just Disney originals, but Star Wars movies and Simpsons episodes) that you now have to pay an entirely new platform to see.
But once a movie is in Four Star’s possession, they own it. And they own a lot of them.
“We have the advantage of having a more extensive back catalog than any streaming service could offer, as well as a passionate staff that is excited to help you navigate it, and make you aware of associations between films that might not be obvious on first glance,” says Peterson.
Interested volunteers can contact Peterson at 4starvideorental@gmail.com, by calling 608-255-1994, or via the contact form on the store’s website.