Music fans returning to campus this year will have a new place to shop for tunes and even see some live local music.

Dharma Records, located at 2514 Lincoln Way, will be opening next week, owners of the new store said.

Dharma Records is being launched by DJ Vacanti, senior in psychology, and Justin Means, an Ames resident who manages local band Medulla Oblongata.

The store will sell new and used CDs, records, magazines, used books and local art, Vacanti said. Dharma Records will replace Aftermath Music, the used music store that moved to the West Coast over the summer.

“We want to start something new that’s going to last,” Vacanti said.

Vacanti and Means would like to help establish a “cultural atmosphere” in Ames. “People need to be more open-minded and cultured, and we hope to provide that,” Means said.

The owners intend to sell all different styles of music because “everyone listens to something different,” and they are willing to special order any music for customers.

One of the unique aspects of Dharma Records will be a stage right inside the store that will feature performances by local artists. The stage will be an outlet for people to meet and intermingle with Ames musicians and to experience their music.

Another stage will be located outside, behind the store in the beer garden at Cafe Lovish, Vicanti added.

Although Dharma Records is a record store first and foremost, the store will also have the feel of a coffee shop with coffee, tea and cookies available to customers.

The owners said they want to make Dharma Records a place for anyone to stop by and hang out.

“We encourage people to loiter,” Means said. “Stop in before class and have a cookie or some coffee, come back and listen to some music.”

There will be tables set up outside for customers to sit and listen to live jazz music on occasion, Means added.

The store will also be open late with special events happening on some nights. Tuesday evenings there will be tarot card readings, and on Sundays, the store will offer henna tattooing.

Means described henna as a non-permanent tattooing art that lasts only for a couple of weeks and looks “tribal.”

The “listening lounge” will provide customers with the opportunity to listen to music before they buy it, while sitting on a comfortable couch.

A six-foot sign also will be built and set up on the roof of the building, displaying the store’s logo. The logo depicts a Buddhist figure and was designed by artists at The Asylum.

Vacanti and Means named their store after “dharma,” a Hindu word that means “one’s purpose in life.”

Vacanti explained that he and Means chose Dharma as the name because they are young and aspiring to their goal of creating a cultural atmosphere in Ames.

“I’m not going to leave Ames until I accomplish one thing, and that is to create some entertainment in town. The local music scene could be huge if people would get behind it,” Means said.

“Look around. Support local music. Support local art. Support free thinking and see what Ames has to offer,” he said.