The days of lining up in person to get tickets to a highly sought-after music concert or sporting event in Canberra will be over by the end of the week.
Songland Records in Cooleman Court has announced the in-store Ticketek agency will be shut off at 6pm on Friday.
For the last 30 years, Songland has operated the Ticketek agency at three different locations in Canberra and sold tickets in person to fans for thousands of events, from Taylor Swift concerts to Brumbies grand finals to Raiders finals games.
Songland Records owner Brian "Frog" Harris said it was his decision to no longer operate the Ticketek agency and he appreciated it was the end of an era.
"It was not a decision taken easily as we've always been professionally committed to helping everyone get to their events since the first Songland store opposite the Tuggeranong College," he said, on Facebook.
"No, there won't be another outlet in Canberra (there's only been a couple across the country for a long time now) and yes, I totally understand the frustrations you will go through with your ongoing queries...
"To all of you that have appreciated the lengths we have gone to over the decades, thank you."
Mr Harris told The Canberra Times the Songland staff had always taken pride in trying to get people their tickets to special events. He said an example was when tickets to an Ed Sheeran concert went on sale across Australia at 6pm but Songland usually closed at 5.30pm.
"We could have shut up shop but we stayed open to ensure everyone got their ticket," he said.
The frenzy to get tickets to Taylor Swift's 2023 The Eras Tour introduced more than a few Canberrans, especially younger fans, to the concept that you could buy tickets in person rather than online.
Many made a beeline to Songland, thrilled to be able to buy a ticket to one of Swift's shows in-store and then hold the golden ticket in their hand.
"Because the demand was that intense, when they searched around, they realised there was an agency here, that had been around for 30 years," Mr Harris said.
"The way I likened it to people was that it's like people have been using UberEats for a decade and then found out you could actually go into McDonald's and buy over the counter."
Still, there was a lot of pressure on the staff during that Taylor Swift Eras period, when fans went almost mad trying to get tickets online and then tried their luck at the Ticketek agency.
"It was crazy because the demand was so intense and because of the misinformation and non-information about the tour, we ended up with people lined up all the time for shows that may or may not have gone on sale for extra tickets that may or may not have gone on sale," Mr Harris said.
"So, it was ridiculous in that respect."
Other busy times had been selling tickets to Brumbies' grand finals or to concerts featuring the reformed Cold Chisel.
"The second Songland store was in the Hyperdome and the queue for the Brumbies grand finals tickets went from the store right around centre court," Mr Harris said.
"Over the years, we've also had people camp out overnight for tickets.
"There's always been intense pressure and responsibility. The way that we did things was unique in so far as keeping everyone briefed with information about the possibility and probability of getting tickets.
"Because we always took it extremely seriously. We're all fans of music events or sporting events or theatre or whatever. We understand the demand and the desire to go and see their favourite performances. We wanted to make sure everyone got looked after as best as possible."
And, sometimes, that responsibility took a toll, with the Songland staff having to manage expectations, allocate scare tickets and often be on call for fans around the nation.
Mr Harris said the Songland agency was the only seven-day-a-week contactable Ticketek agency in Australia and it had eventually morphed into basically the help desk for Ticketek.
Mr Harris said his staff were always happy to try to solve a problem for people but often it was trying to explain to punters that they might have been ripped off buying tickets from scammers.
"Sometimes the calls were basically therapy," Mr Harris said.
While the in-store Ticketek agency will close, Songland Records will still operate in Cooleman Court.
Ticketek has been approached for comment.
