Is anyone else as excited about the Bourgeois/Eastman partnership as I am?

[gr81dorn]

Originally Posted by hermithollow

https://www.google.com/search?q=Bour...hrome&ie=UTF-8

Bourgeois is as Bourgeois does.

As I stated above, the way Dana himself says it is more like Burr-jwa. I’m gonna trust the man himself. There used to and maybe still a FAQ on their website discussing this, but like 15 seconds into this video, he says it himself....just for the record. Definitely not BOO, more o BURR or BOAR.

[jklotz]

My guess is it's going to be similar to Sheehan by Lowden. I don't think Dana would allow something like this to lessen his brand. He's not stupid. Don't worry.

But keep in mind this is all just speculation on our part. Nobody other than those directly involved know what this is going to look like. Personally I am most interested, but I'm not thinking for a second I'm going to get a real Bougious (sp?) for a couple of g's.

I think it's going to help the brand. Lots of folks who aren't even aware they exist now.

[Dwight]

I'm sure Dana made the decision based on was best for his brand, his employees and their futures. Eastman is a good company and I expect they will treat Bourgeois well.

[jswr450]

I'm excited and think it will be good things. It could mean even better guitars at an fairly affordable price point.

[JayBee1404]

The definitive answer to the ‘how is it pronounced’ debate...

https://youtu.be/DjN5oDns9sc

[Silurian]

I hope it goes well. It appears to me that Bourgeois simply want to secure future revenue streams.

A partnership like this seems a good way to grow the business without necessarily having to incur a lot of debt ( and the risk that entails) through capital investment.

[Silly Moustache]

Originally Posted by brencat

I love your enthusiasm but I think you should realize that this partnership/ownership stake by Eastman is Dana’s exit strategy. He’s in his late 60s, right? Probably has 3 - 5 more years before stepping out of the day to day, doing the consulting thing etc, then retirement.

Let’s see where this goes.

I'm sure that this is a very logical assumption.

Further I'm seeing this : "I'm sure Dana made the decision based on was best for his brand, his employees and their futures. Eastman is a good company and I expect they will treat Bourgeois well". from Silurian. A change similr to Pat Eggle when he discontinued his own workshop and imported, supervised quality and distributed Faith guitars.

Frankly, the future of luthiery is moving towards the far east, as Western makers simply pay themselves out of the market.

Same way as the cotton, tobacco an d oil industries, there's always a more competitive supply!

[s2y]

I am indifferent since I already basically have everything I need in the vintage-ish vibe.

[dave42]

Originally Posted by brencat

....you should realize that this partnership/ownership stake by Eastman is Dana’s exit strategy. ....

Exactly. Nothing but a financial move on his behalf. I wish everyone well with this agreement.

[musicman1951]

Originally Posted by jgottsman11

After recently getting a Bourgeois OM, and having tried or owned most of the "common" popular boutique brand guitars, I can't mute my excitement about what Bourgeois and Eastman have the potential of doing for the "high-end" guitar community.

I don't have a clear picture (or any picture) of what kind of instrument is going to flow from this partnership.

From what I've played I find Eastman makes instruments that are an excellent value for the money. I do understand that some ears think they are equal to top of the line guitars, but mine don't. I'm sorry if that's offensive.

I can't imagine the current Bourgeois line is going to be altered in any way by this partnership. The Bourgeois guitars I've played were really wonderful instruments in every way.

Maybe some kind of hybrid Eastman/Bourgeois instruments at a price point between the two?

In any case, I'm saving my excitement for when I have an actual guitar in my hands.

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by Tony Burns

Im sure its real purpose was to keep from going broke -
having instruments in all price points looks good for the bottom line -
a stead flow of cash . Im not fond of guitars as whole that come from the orient
they cut the prices low to make a sale - and their quality is not typically
as good as most US made products -their just cheap .
to make a point most have a low resale used.

No offense intended, you are generalizing. You have your opinions, but the facts say this simply doesn’t apply to Eastman at all. In point of fact, it really doesn’t even apply to a lot of products from the orient, Yamaha being a case in point. American guitars are wonderful and they are generally more expensive, but everybody has quality issues...everybody
Maybe take some time to research Eastman and you will see.

[drive-south]

Originally Posted by drive-south

I assume these guitars will be more expensive than Eastmans. I'd have to think real hard before paying >$2k for an import.

Joe Veillette has a far east company building lower cost versions of his Gryphon model. These sell for $1500 in stead of >$4k for his USA version. I wonder how many he sells.

I just checked Reverb and there are several Veillette Avanti Gryphons for sale all at $1199. That's about the top of my comfort zone for an import. If he offers a 12 string Terz at that price I'm in.

[HodgdonExtreme]

Originally Posted by musicman1951

I don't have a clear picture (or any picture) of what kind of instrument is going to flow from this partnership.

This is only speculation on my part, but it seems kind of obvious to me:

• Americans do not uniquely possess the skill set to construct a finely-crafted piece of woodwork; there are lots of fine craftsmen in China too.
• Highly skilled craftsmen cost a lot more in America than they do in China.
• A fine guitar is a combination of excellent design plus a TON of fine craftsmanship.
• Theoretically, you could combine the design from a highly regarded and pedigreed luthier with inexpensive Chinese labor to offer a guitar equal in design and quality for considerably less money.
• Eastman has already demonstrated they can build a guitar with outstanding craftsmanship.
• It seems the only thing missing is the outstanding design created by the pedigreed luthier...??

Basically, Bourgeois is outsourcing most of the skilled craftsmanship to proven offshore craftsman, leaving only enough of the finish work to American craftsman so as not to annoy American buyers enough to not buy them. The end result being you can buy a Bourgeois guitar for much less money than you can now. Yet leaving the exclusivity of an All-American Bourgeois guitar available for those willing to pay extra for it.

[Scolaguitar]

Originally Posted by HodgdonExtreme

This is only speculation on my part, but it seems kind of obvious to me:

• Americans do not uniquely possess the skill set to construct a finely-crafted piece of woodwork; there are lots of fine craftsmen in China too.
• Highly skilled craftsmen cost a lot more in America than they do in China.
• A fine guitar is a combination of excellent design plus a TON of fine craftsmanship.
• Theoretically, you could combine the design from a highly regarded and pedigreed luthier with inexpensive Chinese labor to offer a guitar equal in design and quality for considerably less money.
• Eastman has already demonstrated they can build a guitar with outstanding craftsmanship.
• It seems the only thing missing is the outstanding design created by the pedigreed luthier...??

Basically, Bourgeois is outsourcing most of the skilled craftsmanship to proven offshore craftsman, leaving only enough of the finish work to American craftsman so as not to annoy American buyers enough to not buy them. The end result being you can buy a Bourgeois guitar for much less money than you can now. Yet leaving the exclusivity of an All-American Bourgeois guitar available for those willing to pay extra for it.

I wish I could hit a like button on this post. Well said.

[jgottsman11]

Originally Posted by HodgdonExtreme

This is only speculation on my part, but it seems kind of obvious to me:

• Americans do not uniquely possess the skill set to construct a finely-crafted piece of woodwork; there are lots of fine craftsmen in China too.
• Highly skilled craftsmen cost a lot more in America than they do in China.
• A fine guitar is a combination of excellent design plus a TON of fine craftsmanship.
• Theoretically, you could combine the design from a highly regarded and pedigreed luthier with inexpensive Chinese labor to offer a guitar equal in design and quality for considerably less money.
• Eastman has already demonstrated they can build a guitar with outstanding craftsmanship.
• It seems the only thing missing is the outstanding design created by the pedigreed luthier...??

Basically, Bourgeois is outsourcing most of the skilled craftsmanship to proven offshore craftsman, leaving only enough of the finish work to American craftsman so as not to annoy American buyers enough to not buy them. The end result being you can buy a Bourgeois guitar for much less money than you can now. Yet leaving the exclusivity of an All-American Bourgeois guitar available for those willing to pay extra for it.

This is an amazing answer. Thank you