Vinyl enthusiasts from across Madison flocked to independent record stores Saturday to celebrate its sixth national Record Store Day with special releases and in-store live performances.

Record Store Day is a promotional event designed to spread awareness about local record stores and their culture, according to Dave Zero, owner of Mad City Music Exchange, one of the stores that participated in the event. Small businesses across the United States see a record number of sales and visitors on this day each year, he said.

“Record Store Day is important because it is hands down the biggest sale day of the year,” Zero said. “It brings in both regulars and new people.”

Gary Feest, owner and manager of Sugar Shack Records, a store on the east side, said Record Store Day reminds people that record stores still exist.

Feest said he moved his store from the downtown area to the east side because there was not a lot of business for him anymore when young people started buying most of their music online. Record Store Day attracts a good number of young customers to the store and gets them interested in buying records again, he said.

Record Store Day promotes small businesses because it brings new people back to the store throughout the year and reminds people in the Madison area to shop in their neighborhood record stores, Zero said. The business the event brings is great for the community because all the money stays in the community, he added.

Zero said the restaurant next door to Mad City Music Exchange benefited from the event by hosting bands and getting additional business from the influx of people in the area.

“Our big day turned into a big day for them as well,” Zero said. “Anything that drives commerce into local stores is a benefit for the community.”

Stores nationwide sell limited edition records on Record Store Day, which is one of the main draws for customers, Zero said. However, many stores also host their own events to attract people to their stores.

In addition to selling limited edition releases, Zero said local bands and artists played at his store throughout the day and there was live music outside for customers to enjoy.

“We tried to make it feel like a party,” he said.

Feest added a local radio station hosted artists in Sugar Shack Records and promoted the event live on the radio throughout the day.

Zero said Record Store Day, started in 2007, gets better every year. This year, sales for Mad City Music Exchanges were even greater than in previous years, he said.

Overall, Feest said there is a renewed interest in purchasing records. While CD sales have decreased, over the last four or five years, record sales have been increasing, he said.

Record Store Day draws attention to the actual art form of the record and the importance of small businesses, Zero said. It reminds people that downloaded music is nothing more than an “impersonation” of what a record actually sounds like and records are the best way to listen to music, he added.