In 1996 Hughes and Robertson were bought out of the business to leave only Kennedy, as pressure from nearby record shops meant they could no longer sustain three partners.

[10] DJ Chef was known to come to the shop and park his moped with attached sound system outside, so that customers could listen to their records.

When Benny Ill started producing early dubstep (which he would show to Artwork and Hijak upstairs), Kennedy suggested that he give them to Joliffe.

Joliffe had strong connections in the garage scene, being intimate with labels like Public Demand, Allstar, and Acetate; and so knowing distributors and pressing plants.

[15] Hatcha, combined with many of Artwork's releases being available only from the shop,[16] led to Big Apple's popularity with Jungle and Garage producers and DJs.

People ripping records and posting them on sites like The Dubstep Forums (DSF) was a major factor.

[17] El-B, Zed Bias, Horsepower Productions, Plastician, N Type, Walsh and Loefah also regularly visited the shop.