“Mr. Sifter sold me songs when I was just 16,” sang Liam Gallagher of Oasis in 1994 and it couldn’t be more relevant today. That lyric refers to a teenager’s regular trip to the local record store where they inevitably become acquaintances with the staff who will soon know them by name.

The experience of going to a record store is just one of many reasons that people find vinyl records so appealing. Millennials are a huge part of the reason for the resurgence of vinyl records and though many are trying to write it off as a “hipster fad,” here are some reasons why vinyl isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

1. Major retailers now carry them.

In the U.S., places like Urban Outfitters, FYE, Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million carry vinyl records in their stores. In addition, sites like Amazon, Target and Wal-Mart carry them online. Let’s be clear: These stores don’t just carry records by The Beatles and current rock that the indie kids are after. Urban Outfitters carries stuff by John Coltrane, Neil Young, The Ronettes, Joan Baez, Howlin’ Wolf and much more. If you told someone 10 or 15 years ago that this would have happened, they would have probably laughed in your face.

This renewed interest in vinyl records is by no means an American phenomenon. In the United Kingdom, the third largest retailer in the world, Tesco, has recently announced that it will now carry vinyl records. Also, music chains like HMV and Rough Trade, which both carry vinyl, have been thriving for years now.

(Of course, this sparks a debate about major chains vs. independent record stores, but that is a whole different discussion!)

2. Vinyl is the fastest growing music format. (Watch out Spotify!)

According to NME, at the end of last year, it was reported that sales of vinyl records in the U.S. had hit a 26-year high in 2015. This means that the last time vinyl sales were so high in America was 1989. This figure has been largely credited to millennials, since it was reported that half of vinyl record customers are under 25.

An even more exciting statistic for vinyl record fans is that it is now the fastest growing music format, beating out MP3 and streaming revenues. According to the RIAA, in the U.S., vinyl sales have increased by 52 percent year-on-year to $222 million in the first half of 2015. Streaming is also on the rise, but not quite as rapidly. Streaming revenue had a 27 percent increase during the same period to $163 million.

Another promising fact is that existing record plants are now having to scramble to keep up with this immense demand and new plants are even starting to open up across North America.

3. Record Store Day is thriving.

Record Store Day, which began in 2008 as a way for independent record stores to celebrate the wonders of vinyl, has been thriving and is one of the contributing factors of vinyl records’ recent jump into the mainstream.

Each year, in an effort to support local record stores, artists release new vinyl (sometimes exclusive releases) especially for that day to draw in as many customers as possible and each year there is a famous ambassador who backs this worldwide campaign. In past years, the likes of Jack White, Dave Grohl and Joshua Homme were ambassadors for the event and often, record stores will hold in-store gigs to make the customer experience even more exciting. In the UK, Record Store Day is even supported by the BBC, which validates the campaign’s high profile and ascent into the mainstream.

4. It provides music fans with a whole experience, which digital music will always lack.

This is the reason why millennials and audiophiles are loving vinyl. Going into a record store is such a pleasant experience and for people like me - it gives you that kid in a candy store feeling. Crates and shelves full of new and used records from every genre and decade means that you never know what you might find and that’s exciting!

Also, vinyl LPs often come in cool, different colors besides just the standard black and may come with extras like a sheet of lyrics, a free MP3 download code, a CD, a poster or exclusive photos. Also, being able to examine and appreciate the album artwork in great detail and large form is so much better than looking at it as a tiny icon on your phone.

There is also appeal in the idea of having a physical collection of all your favorite albums and being able to go to the record store on the day an album came out and hold it in your hands for the first time. This experience doesn’t even come close to the forgettable moment of downloading an album from iTunes.

A lot of people often feel guilty about the skimpy margins that artists make on MP3 and streaming revenues, so a lot of people also feel obligated to support their favorite artists by purchasing a $20 to $30 LP rather than a track off iTunes for $1.29.

Finally, the wonderful crackling sound when you place the needle on the grooves of a record is just bliss. Audiophiles swear by vinyl as the purest form of music due to the fact nothing is lost when pressing a record. Whereas with digital music, the audio is compressed and loses a lot of the original analog sound.

So, get out there and support local record stores and your favorite artists by starting a vinyl collection. And your taste in music is sure to improve, too!