James Wilcox got introduced to the iconic music store, the Sound Spectrum, on surfing trips to Laguna Beach.
His sister, Audrey, tagged along, visiting the store in high school. Now she’s practically a neighbor after recently moving to town with her fiancé.
The siblings said they loved the vibe and sense of community at the more than 50-year-old store on South Coast Highway in the center of the town. So when news of its pending sale appeared in a post on The Orange County Register’s Instagram feed, James Wilcox suggested the family purchase the store.
“I’ve been coming to Sound Spectrum for a long time,” the 28-year-old said. “I think there is something really special that I don’t think I can really describe. And, the idea even that it was for sale was kind of wild. It felt almost impossible that that was even an option.”
James and Audrey Wilcox both work in the music industry in Los Angeles, and said they love the idea of keeping independent music ventures alive, while combining that with current trends in the industry.
Their younger sister, Sadie Jean, 22, is an up-and-coming singer-songwriter, so they hope the store, once reopened, becomes a spot for artists to stop for musical events.
“Working with independent artists and seeing the impact on the state of the music industry and seeing the kind of places like Sound Spectrum closing is so sad,” said Audrey Wilcox, 30, who graduated with a business degree from USC. “Having the opportunity to try and use our skill set and save a place that’s so central to Laguna, it also felt like a cool way to bridge the connections we’ve made with artists and managers and, on the industry side, what’s new and digital, and bring that to the physical space and get people reconnected with the community.”
Siblings Audrey and James Wilcox recently bought the iconic Laguna Beach Sound Spectrum record store that was founded in 1967 by Edith and Jimmy Otto. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)James Wilcox said he broached buying the store and its building to his parents and siblings right after Christmas.
“Because it’s in the neighborhood where the family lives, it felt golden,” he said.
The store, where generations have browsed looking for classics and cool new tunes, old and new vinyl, CDs, unique T-shirts, record label memorabilia, stickers and posters, was put up for sale in December by its original owner.
Edith Otto, who, with her husband, Jimmy, first opened the store in 1967, had made the difficult decision that she needed to let it go. She was getting older, still had other things to accomplish, and Jimmy had died in 2023.
When she listed it for sale, she hoped someone would appreciate the venue’s history and possibly continue with the business, she said. With the Wilcox siblings, her dream came true.
“I’m grateful,” she said. “I wasn’t expecting this; the universe just unfolded this way.”
Otto said she picked the family out from a group of buyers after they informed her in writing of their intentions to reopen the business and care for the building.
“I think they can do it; they’re young, and I think they can bring it up to the future and have an online presence,” she said. “It needs all those things. Just that they’re preserving the building is the icing on the cake. I’m really so happy about that.”
When Otto handed over the keys to the Wilcoxs, she walked the family through the store, showing them folders of longtime mementos, old newspaper clippings and other treasured items.
“It was a really cool moment and a ‘changing of the guard,’” James Wilcox said. “It was really awesome.”
Suzanne Wilcox, the siblings’ mother, said she’s excited about this opportunity for her children. She lives just down the street and next to her daughter and her fiancé, Corey Consunji, so she’s able to just walk to the shop.
Suzanne Wilcox works in her family’s newly purchased record store on Tuesday, April 8, 2025. Sound Spectrum, an iconic Laguna Beach store, was founded in 1967 by Edith and Jimmy Otto. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)On Tuesday, April 8, she was dusting off albums in the racks on the store’s large main floor. She volunteers to do anything to help out, including going to get coffee.
“It’s just a gift; the universe aligned, and it was meant to be,” she said. “The kids are so excited. They have the right skill sets. It’s the perfect business for our family. Audrey’s background is in marketing and graphics. She’s very detailed and organized. So is James. But while James sees the forest, Audrey thinks, ‘What about the trees?’ Sadie is an artist and all three love music.”
“As a mother, it ‘s such a gift to see my kids collaborating,” she added. “Every mother wants to see her kids thriving and feeding their soul.”
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Because they don’t want to get rid of things that might be valuable or that they may want to reintroduce to the store, they’ve rented a storage space in Laguna Canyon and said they have made at least eight trips to store posters, memorabilia and vinyl.
They also value the property’s history and the music store’s culture in Laguna Beach and beyond, they said, while still realizing the realities of running a music store as the industry changes.
“To be an independent record store is really hard,” James Wilcox said. “But in our mind, that’s where we feel we can add the most value.”
The store Jimmy and Edith Otto created over half a century is “definitely one of the oldest in California and it survived a lot to get here,” James Wilcox said. “Our goal is to keep it around even longer.”
The siblings said they are interested in how the changes they’re making, such as painting the walls and other types of “spring cleaning,” will resonate with those who come to see Sound Spectrum once they open. They also brought in a local artist to repaint a mural on an archway done by artist Bill Ogden, who was known for his surf-related cartoons of the early 1960s, his psychedelic posters from the later part of the decade and his tropical fantasies of the 1970s.
Daily, now, people have been popping in just to see how things are progressing.
“A lot of people who are really excited that the Sound Spectrum is staying the Sound Spectrum honestly hadn’t shopped here in a long time,” James Wilcox said. “I think that’s what’s interesting, is that all these people are excited about something staying the same, but whether or not they choose to continue to support it is going to be up to them and up to us to bring them back in.”
“We really do want to serve the tourists here and continue to have it as a destination for people to come, and we hope the locals support it as well,” he added. “It’s kind of finding that balance of old and new.”
Siblings Audrey and James Wilcox recently bought Sound Spectrum, a Laguna Beach record store founded in 1967. They are pictured through a Mazzy Star album, a favorite of Audrey Wilcox. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)Wave Baker, who worked in the record shop for 25 years and hand-in-hand with Jimmy Otto, is helping them find that balance.
“For many years now, my mission and goal has been to make sure the Sound Spectrum would be here long after I’m gone,” he said. “When I met James and Audrey, it was a dream come true. I’m happy to do my part to make it even better.”
“I’m there to help and make suggestions and just want to see it succeed,” he added. “I’m going to keep the vibe and be there to watch over it, keep it a fun store, and keep the essence and funky, trippy alive.”
The siblings aren’t sure exactly when they’ll open, saying they want to make sure everything is ready and are optimistic about doing so soon.
For James Wilcox, the experience of buying the Sound Spectrum is part of a presentation on “managing expectations” he will make this week to an entrepreneur class at Loyola Marymount, where he graduated with a business degree.
“If someone at any point before this year would have told me that I’d be the owner of the Sound Spectrum, I wouldn’t believe it,” he said. “So I believe that the universe has my best interest, and I have to trust that what’s best will come. And, that no matter how much I try to manage different expectations, what will come will come. So, even when it comes to when the store will open and how successful it will be, we have to trust it will work out for the best.”
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