Bosses of vinyl shops across the county say they have seen their “best year yet” as sales hit their highest level since 1990.

The country has seen an 11.7% rise in purchases – around 5.9 million units – this year, according to an analysis of the Official Charts data by the music association British Phonographic Industry (BPI).

Vinyl sales across the country have increased for the 16th consecutive year, which has been led by new releases from artists such as Taylor Swift, The Rolling Stones and Lana Del Ray.

Last week, more than a quarter of a million albums were sold making it the highest sales week for the format this century.

And businesses in Kent have benefited from the boom in the industry, with the owner of Medway Record Centre, Phillip Jessop, explaining “sales have gone up dramatically over the last eight years”.

Phillip, who has run the store in Canterbury Street, Gillingham, for almost three decades, said: “It is here to stay. I think people want to own a product and have the item in their hands.

“They want to hold the item and put it on the decks. It is about owning something.

“It is more of an experience to play a record than streaming.”

Although more than four-fifths of recorded music consumption is made up of streaming, demand for vinyl is continuing to grow and has hit its highest level since 1990.

Like Phillip, owner of Vinylstore Jr, in Castle Street, Canterbury, Nick Pygott said the idea of ownership is what is driving sales.

He added: “Streaming is still dominant as it is more accessible and convenient but you do not get any sense of ownership.

“If you want to own a physical thing then vinyl is the best. It is a different relationship with music.

“With vinyl, you put a record on and listen to it whereas streaming is a very passive way of listening. It is almost a different experience.”

Nick sells both new and second-hand records and said both are in high demand. He added: “This has been our best year yet. It is nice, it is still growing.

“Our customer base is also becoming more diverse every year. It was middle-aged men and students but now it is everybody.”

Read more: Kent's record shops and the vinyl revival.

Elephant Music, in Harmer Street, Gravesend, only started selling vinyl in the summer after they found people were often coming into the store in the hopes they had some in stock.

Co-owner Johnny “Jukebox” Batelle said: “The last few weeks we have had a lot of people coming in to pick up records, especially younger people.

“It is moving in an upward spiral and vinyl is continuing to grow in popularity.”

The official vinyl chart’s top five albums this year are 1989 (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift, Hackney Diamonds by The Rolling Stones, Did You Know There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd by Lana Del Ray, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift and Rumours by Fleetwood Mac.