Best Dealer for Custom Martin

[hairpuller]

Originally Posted by frankmcr

Not much point ordering a custom guitar without a solid understanding of what the various custom guitar options mean.

Maybe wait a few years, play a bunch of guitars, take note of what things do and do not appeal to you. Then order a custom guitar that has what you want in a guitar.

I'm down with this advice! This is a really fun part of learning about guitars and what a person wants/needs in one.
scott

[Mrbirdog]

Anybody else noticed or is it just me and not just on this website but other forums where there are posters that are kings of hyperbole and have no intent of substantiating anything that they claim…
A little off topic but I’m kind of like Rhett Butler right now

[yukonkornelius]

Martin dealers get their guitars at 50% of the list price. Therefore the more expensive the guitar, the more they make and the more room they have to work with.

I think dealers with a showroom level of overhead are VERY generous to offer 40% off of list. That's leaving them only 10% and they have a business to run and mouths to feed.

[Mrbirdog]

Originally Posted by yukonkornelius

Martin dealers get their guitars at 50% of the list price. Therefore the more expensive the guitar, the more they make and the more room they have to work with.

I think dealers with a showroom level of overhead are VERY generous to offer 40% off of list. That's leaving them only 10% and they have a business to run and mouths to feed.

With all due respect and I mean that seriously , 10% is it gonna Feed any mouths or run a business. That would not begin to cover fixed costs

[mcduffnw]

Originally Posted by yukonkornelius

Martin dealers get their guitars at 50% of the list price. Therefore the more expensive the guitar, the more they make and the more room they have to work with.

I think dealers with a showroom level of overhead are VERY generous to offer 40% off of list. That's leaving them only 10% and they have a business to run and mouths to feed.

Yes yukonkornelius...you are right that it is VERY generous for a dealer to offer 40 off list and make only 10-15% hard margin, and try to keep the business running.

Now one thing...the dealer doesn't really have "more room to work" on a more expensive guitar, because he has a more expensive cost as well. So if he has to whittle more off of his "more expensive priced" guitar's "more expensive price" then he very likely ends up with less profit by % than he might on a lower priced guitar. What is the dealers incentive to stock the higher priced guitar, just to have to sell it for a lower % profit margin? Especially if the dealer has a B&M storefront as well as an online store. B&M costs serious money to operate and having to drop margins down to the 10-15% range of item cost does not cut it for very long.

I often wonder why so many folks on the guitar forums always feel that they are really entitled to the 40% off MAP "meme" no matter what.

Is service before, during and after the sale worth nothing to buyers anymore, whether online or B&M?

Remember back...not THAT long ago...when guitars sold for Retail List...maybe 10-15% off on some kind of really good sale? I do. Guitars still sold and buyers were still happy, and dealers had a much healthier bottom line.

Now for the dealers, it has completely flipped...now they are not taking 10-15% off of list on a sale...they have to be willing to take 10-15% gross profit against list to make a sale.

Tough row to hoe.

Ever ask your plumber, electrician, lawyer, mechanic, dentist to take 40% off their MAP...so to speak...pricing on their goods or services?

In whatever line of work you folks do for a living...how would it work out for you to have to routinely take 40% off your version of MAP for your product/service/wage and keep financially stable/successful in your line of work...for your living income?


duff
Be A Player...Not A Polisher

[stephenT]

Don't agree w/ your post. It isn't common to get 40% off of MSRP a new Martin. I'm not saying it doesn't happen but I will say that if a dealer commonly gave 40% Martins and custom Martins they wouldn't be a Martin dealer very long.

I'm a bargain shopper, I prefer to pay the least possible price. But what I don't do is beat up a dealer so badly he violates his dealer agreement w/ Martin. I may want to buy another guitar, get strings, etc., from that dealer at some date in the future.

So,... to pay the rent, utilities, salespeople, workman's comp, advertising, taxes, shipping, (most likely) the interest on a floor plan to keep the store stocked w/ product, on and on,.. the plight of the small biz,...

Twenty percent profit would be a minimum on a special deal, 35% is reasonable.

Originally Posted by Mrbirdog

Please school us if you are in the know. What type of margin is needed “in general” to keep a brick and mortar store open. Markup is more like 100% or north of that..... and yes it is common to get 40% off msrp even on a custom order.
If you start with the 50% mark up and do a 40% off MSRP the math doesn’t work and go out of business pretty quick couldn’t even afford to keep the lights on

[Coop47]

Mark at Reno's did a great job for me. I had reached out to him about one of his custom orders and we got to talking about a custom order for me. The cost was 40% of MSRP.

I've heard good things about Maury's Music as well, and I believe it's similar pricing.

[Teherie]

I received 35% off MSRP ON MY CUSTOM AND 40% off my standard models from my brick and mortar store which closed for retirement two years ago.

I think everyone was a winner in all 3 transactions.

[mcl116]

Originally Posted by loco gringo

I would recommend a call to Ted at LA Guitars. He knows a lot about navigating Martin customs.

Is Ted on these forums by any chance?

If not, how would I get in touch with him directly?

[loco gringo]

Originally Posted by mcl116

Is Ted on these forums by any chance?

If not, how would I get in touch with him directly?

https://www.laguitarsales.com/

[gmel555]

Wow, A LOT (granted with a few exceptions) of focus on price, price, price. I think some "stories" about CS pricing can be like comparing apples to oranges. There are CS special runs where a number of similar/exact spec'ed guitars will be produced in one run at a larger discount because of economy of scale. There are NAMM special orders & pricing on CS orders. Dealers make CS orders for their inventory and sometimes these hang in stock for a little longer so they get an extra discount. And frankly some reports of "the great discount I got" may just be tall tales

Sure price is very important but the Post is entitled "Best Dealer for Custom Martin", not "Cheapest Dealer for Custom Martin". I'd also want to know that a dealer I'd order from:
1)will knowledgeably help me through the selection process, 2) can help with selection of the woods (maybe get me photos of blanks to choose from before construction, and 3) will give me great after sale support, follow-up with Martin on my behalf if something goes awry, etc. Also, depending on what I'm after I may want to support a smaller or local shop, helping them remain a viable retailer for my and my community's future needs. Maybe I'm in the minority but just my 2 cents...no wait a minute with the extra discount it's my 1.75 cents.

With that said, I'd check with very nice folks at Tobias Music in Downers Grove, IL

[Wild Bill Jones]

I had a very good business experience with Mark at Reno’s a few years back. If I was in that market again I wouldn’t hesitate.