Quote:
Originally Posted by Stevien
It's worth keeping an eye on history here. This has been done many times before, with mixed results. The reasoning, is mass production, higher profit, & less labor costs. This helps the bottom line immediately, but usually deteriorates quality in the end game. Martin did this in the 70s, & it nearly brought them to their knees. Guild & Gibson tried similar acquisitions that did not end well. Breedlove did it in the late 90s & early 2000s, which helped their bottom line, but is strangling them now. Their line-up is so confusing & hybridized, that no one wants to deal with it. The bottom line is this; yes it will increase distribution & volume, but is that what the Bourgeois customer wants?
Steve
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Indeed, Ovation is also a sad example where they started out with good intentions of providing more affordable guitars and using the extra profits to support their U.S. production. In the end the reputation suffered and now all people can get as new guitars are the watered down Asian versions. Let's hope that Bourgeouis and Eastman have learned the lesson and avoid the mistakes that were made in the past.