SOLD Help on setting price of high end guitar

Doug Michaels · #1 05-31-2015, 10:09 PM

On this forum under the For Sale category I have a Breedlove A22. This guitar is none other than awesome and in MINT condition.
My sincere question is this......how much should I be asking for this beauty. I want to be realistic given the market. I have it for sale on Reverb and here but there is very little interest. Why?
I appreciate any honest theories, answers, suggestions and what is a good price to be listing it for. BTW its at $3900 and has some very nice photos on the ad.
I am very open to any suggestions. Thanks in advance.

Doug

6L6 · #2 05-31-2015, 10:13 PM

For that kind of money there are a lot of more popular options out there. You're going to need someone really looking for a Breedlove and their numbers are far fewer than those looking for Martins, Collings, & Taylors.

That said, you only need ONE right person to be interested. They'll show up sooner or later, but probably later.

#3 05-31-2015, 10:31 PM

I don't have a good feel for a realistic price. I do know that Breedlove's marketing strategy and product lineup have been somewhat erratic, which I believe has made it difficult to build up a strong following in higher price range. Like Bill said, there just aren't that many buyers of $4000 guitars who want a Breedlove. Either you get lucky or wait a long time to sell.

yoni · #4 05-31-2015, 10:38 PM

I will agree in saying that feels pretty high. From just searching other Breedloves this seems high. If you're willing to sell it you have to be willing to take a loss.

tadol · #5 05-31-2015, 11:04 PM

I dont want you (or anyone else) thinking I'm bashing Breedlove, cause I don't mean to, but if you look on Reverb, there are over 400 Breedloves for sale, ranging from only $200 to nearly $5000. With that much range in their offerings, I'd want to be very brand intelligent before spending at the high end of that range on one. The design is unique, and probably not super attractive to more traditional buyers, so that limits buyer appeal. Then, there is the pricing based on current replacement cost - thats a red flag to me that theres a need to create the impression of value based on something more than the actual value of the instrument. Its a very nice koa/sitka guitar - but in the $4000 range, there are quite a few really, really nice options available for used guitars - do you feel that what you are offering has more appeal than those? Its a very unique and special guitar, and may easily be worth your asking price, but it may take a Breedlove afficianado to really appreciate what you are offering. But to the average guitar shopper, that may not look like the best value for their dollar. I would probably only be really interested in it if I were to pick it up in a shop and played it and it just really grabbed me - but otherwise, sorry. I wish I had more insight and could be more helpful, but thats my impression - Have you considered putting it in a shop on consignment that promotes Breedloves and has more customers looking for them? Who is the largest dealer of Breedlove? I'd talk to them - but also keep in mind that selling any guitar in that price range is not terribly easy -

Doug Michaels · #6 05-31-2015, 11:24 PM

Very helpful stuff so far from all responses. Open to more thoughts. I like the idea of listing in a Breedlove dealers showroom. Just worried about someone putting its first scratch on it.

AZLiberty · #7 06-01-2015, 12:05 AM

I know you are in California, but Acoustic Vibes in Tempe AZ might be the right place to put it on consignment. They have several other Masterclass instruments.

Breedloves are hard to price for a lot of reasons, and a Masterclass instrument is essentially a custom instrument, which makes it much harder.

Not sure what it would cost to order a replacement, but 65% of the replacement cost would be a good starting point. That bearclaw is going to turn off a lot of buyers as well.

rolleiguy54 · #8 06-01-2015, 06:18 AM

Doug,

I sold a beautiful guitar from a well know custom builder. If you ordered it from
the builder it would cost close to 10k.

I listed for a while at 5k and then sold it on consignment. My net was about $3,500.
In the end I should have kept it but you know how these things go. One in one out and I already bought the "in" one.

I don't think you get value out of selling custom guitars unless you find just the right buyer. It's tough. Good luck. I think you may have to come down on your price.

I agree on trying consignment at a Breedlove shop.

pszy22 · #9 06-01-2015, 06:32 AM

One other option, Elderly Music does a fair amount of trade in used instruments. If you go to their site, there is a form you can electronically submit specifying what you are interested in selling. They will tell you three figures - what they will buy it for, what they will give you as trade in, what they will sell it for on consignment.

Whether or not you decide to do business with them, it should give you some sense of what the guitar is worth on the open market.

Good luck

Tele1111 · #10 06-01-2015, 06:39 AM

Just to be frank, Breedlove instruments are way undervalued on the used market. They have been and it looks like they will continue to be. I saw your ad when you first posted. It's a wonderful guitar, but I knew immediately your asking price was way too high. If you research the "sold" prices you'll see what I mean. It's a hard pill to swallow, especially because they are such wonderful instruments. I played them almost exclusively for quite a few years. I believe you'll have to take about 65% to 70% of your current asking price in order to sell it. It's my opinion, but my experience in buying and selling them over the years has proven this over and over.

Bad Poppa · #11 06-01-2015, 06:40 AM

Hey Doug. It is a gorgeous guitar, and I'm sure worth every penny. I've owned a couple of Breedlove's over the years, and their model number system makes it VERY difficult to know what level certain guitars are. I had a "Pro-Series" that was made 60% in the USA and 40% in Korea. I then had an "American Pro-series" later, that was 100% USA. I know your instrument is a totally different class, but I'm not sure how many people (not familiar with Breedlove) will know these differences.
That being said, I think the idea of going with a high-end consignment shop would be the way to go.

SFCRetired · #12 06-01-2015, 07:20 AM

It's always going to take longer to sell a higher end guitar and as someone else mentioned, Breedlove is not a household name so a lot of people will pass by it. Like me, I have no experience with a Breedlove.

You just have to wait for the right buyer to come along and it may take a while.

amyFB · #13 06-01-2015, 07:23 AM

I have a custom revival series Breedlove for sale and have the same lack of interest. It was one of ten models produced to launch the Revival series. So it has that 'limited edition' attribute going for it; but that's more appealing to a collector than a player. (i think)

Another poster commented that Breedlove's offerings have been 'erratic' and I'm inclined to agree that this is having an effect on resale values.

When they merged with Bedell, I think that was the beginning of the downward trend in perception for the brand as a high end option. Both Bedell and Breedlove have many models in a lower price bracket that perform very well.

I suspect that a potential buyer has to specifically want the model you have for the same or similar reasons that got you or I to buy it in the first place.

My asking price is equal to what I paid for it. The 'build new to same specs' quote from Breedlove is $2000 higher than I am asking.

In the end, I guess I don't need the money as much as I need the emotional satisfaction of finding a buyer who values it as I do.

Good luck with your classified!

buddyhu · #14 06-01-2015, 07:30 AM

In addition to the feedback that is specific to the Breedlove brand, I think the koa back and sides might be a factor. Many folks haven't heard a koa guitar. Of those who have heard one and like the koa tone, some will be reluctant to buy without playing it first. So I'd be another person who would advocate placing it in a shop on consignment, so that people can play it and be charmed by it.

nedray · #15 06-01-2015, 07:48 AM

All the above comments are spot on in the vagaries of selling guitars. I know I, for one, am not thinking Breedlove, new or used, when I have $4K burning a hole in my pocket. But on the other hand, Reverb is a good place to list such an esoteric item and I would advise patience. If any online marketplace will find a buyer for a unique instrument, it's there. But it might take a while. As for price, do you know the original list price? A good rule of thumb is half of original list--at least for more conventional offerings. Good luck--it's a challenging time.