#31
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Here's an interesting question.
What is the percentage of walk-ins who tryout a guitar that sells for $2000 or more actually buy it at GC? How about $3000? How about $4000 or more? Here's another. How many high end guitars over $3000 percentage-wise based on dollars of sales does GC sell period? If I were to spend $4000 on a guitar, I'm going to drive to a privately-owned guitar store if it's at all possible. I am 6-1/2 hours from Maury's, 4-1/2 hours from Elderly's and that's where I'm headed. If I t's $3-$4000... that's a lot of money to me and I want to be treated right. Maybe there are lots of others out there with money to burn. I'm not one of them. Seems to me, the approach needs fixed or quit the high-end guitar business. BTW, I did buy my J45 from a GC but this store was not run like some of the ones described on this thread.
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Nothing bothers me unless I let it. Martin D18 Gibson J45 Gibson J15 Fender Copperburst Telecaster Squier CV 50 Stratocaster Squier CV 50 Telecaster |
#32
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Interestingly, the high-end Gibson electrics aren't locked up but are on the wall behind the front counter. Bob
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"It is said, 'Go not to the elves for counsel for they will say both no and yes.' " Frodo Baggins to Gildor Inglorion, The Fellowship of the Ring THE MUSICIAN'S ROOM (my website) |
#33
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How exactly did you get fleeced? As you say, you needed them pronto. Sure you can get a set for $16 from Sweetwater and they'll be there in 2-4 business days. Sweetwater doesn't have all of the expenses that a retail store does and they certainly aren't going to get you strings pronto. Brick and mortar stores, even big ones like GC, can't compete with online sales. Where they make up for it is immediacy and being able to actually see and hold what you are buying. Yes, you payed more than you could have but you got them literally days earlier than you would have if you saved a few bucks. |
#34
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https://www.guitarworld.com/gear/man...-guitar-center https://www.wsmv.com/news/more-store...fbad9370a.html |
#35
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I have a GC three miles from my house and I hadn't gone there in several years. My store basically sells bargain basement models that are $600 or less. I went in to compare a Martin OM and/or Martin 000-28 to my 314ce Taylor to hear the differences. No dice. No OM's and the only 000 was an "X" model that sounded thin and flat. The only "nice" models were three Martin Dreads that were so high up in that dimly lit room, I could only see the prices (2400-2800) but not what models. I still had fun anyway but apparently it's no longer profitable for them sell what I would call "nice" guitars. I thought Yamaha's Fg-800 sounded pretty darn good for $200, though. Also Yamaha had a Parlor Model which sounded WAY better than the Recording King I had.
It also drove home how much better my 314ce sounded than any similar sized body. Guess if I want to try out anything really nice I'll have to make a trip to Maple Street in Atlanta. |
#36
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Sam Ash has supplanted GC in my town as the quality mega-store. They are very strong with Taylor and the Road Show always goes there when it comes around. But, they have token Martins. I’m surprised they haven’t lost the line. The AAA Martin dealer is a small independent with tons of inventory that also sells on the net.
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Consensus, by definition, is a lack of leadership. |
#37
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Easy on the common sense there Willie! A lot of folks aren't used to it!
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"Music is much too important to be left to professionals." |
#38
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These are perennial topics.
My own take is that I understand why they need to lock the guitars up, or put them way up high, but also that it makes it much much less likely that I would ever try one out. I won't ask a staff person to get me a guitar down unless I am actively looking right now. (Also, with the "up high" thing, I often can't even tell which exact models are up there. That makes it even less likely I would ask to see one). Might that ever cost them a sale? Maybe. I am quite capable of buying a $2,500 guitar on impulse if I tried one out that really appealed to me. Whether that would happen is something one can know. (Much over $2,500 and I really ought to talk about it ahead of time with the Mrs.) This also means that I don't even know about models that I might really like, as I never try them. It really keeps the GAS down, since reading about guitar models and seeing pictures of them is not remotely the same as playing them. And it definitely makes me much less likely to go in the store in the first place. I eat lunch right next to a GC several days a week. I rarely go in. Every single guitar, electric or acoustic, that I would be remotely interested in is either locked up or way up high. But again, I understand that if they don't put the guitars out of reach, they will get damaged. So they really are in a no win situation. What they have to do to keep the guitars safe takes away my interest to even go in the store. |
#39
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Quote:
Bob
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"It is said, 'Go not to the elves for counsel for they will say both no and yes.' " Frodo Baggins to Gildor Inglorion, The Fellowship of the Ring THE MUSICIAN'S ROOM (my website) |
#40
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so how do they protect their inventory without upsetting customers who wish to easily play the inventory?
play music!
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2014 Martin 00015M 2009 Martin 0015M 2008 Martin HD28 2007 Martin 000-18GE 2006 Taylor 712 2006 Fender Parlor GDP100 1978 Fender F65 1968 Gibson B25-12N Various Electrics |
#41
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Here's my philosophy: If you're a giant, national big box chain corporation that has made it its business model to steamroller locally owned, family businesses, and you still can't get your act together in terms of offering a pleasing and conducive shopping atmosphere to your customers, I'm going to walk away and seek out the very businesses that you were trying to beat out in the first place.
The whole point of wiping out competition is to impose your retailing experience onto the market, and if in the process, you become the nicest, friendliest and most pleasing store around, then maybe, just maybe, I could warm up to that at least a little. But if you go the way GC has been going, where the retailing experience has deteriorated to the point that I feel like I'm viewed like a shoplifter in a dollar store, it just turns me off for good. Our local GC stores have done the same thing, locking up all the guitars I'd be even remotely interested in. No, thank you. Because in addition to communicating to me as a customer that I can no longer browse your selection as I used to, you're also communicating to me that you attract all sorts of lowlives, and that's simply not the kind of crowd I'd want to associate with as a customer of your store. I have bought my last expensive guitar at a locally owned store, and I buy my accessories there. And in addition to a pleasing shopping atmosphere, that locally owned store gave me a much better discount than GC ever has.
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"I've always thought of bluegrass players as the Marines of the music world" – (A rock guitar guy I once jammed with) Martin America 1 Martin 000-15sm Recording King Dirty 30s RPS-9 TS Taylor GS Mini Baton Rouge 12-string guitar Martin L1XR Little Martin 1933 Epiphone Olympic 1971 square neck Dobro Last edited by DesertTwang; 02-12-2019 at 02:16 PM. |
#42
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Of course, that probably would mean to divert some of the profits away from the stakeholders' luxury yachts and golf resort vacations and put it toward improving the business...
__________________
"I've always thought of bluegrass players as the Marines of the music world" – (A rock guitar guy I once jammed with) Martin America 1 Martin 000-15sm Recording King Dirty 30s RPS-9 TS Taylor GS Mini Baton Rouge 12-string guitar Martin L1XR Little Martin 1933 Epiphone Olympic 1971 square neck Dobro |
#43
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I really fail to see why this is an issue at all. I have been to several and it has never been a hassle to find someone to try a guitar that I was really interested in. I have in past years seen way too many nice guitars beaten up by a bunch of bonehead kids with no intention or a wallet large enough to buy them as they sit there flailing away with a flat pick. One thing I could never stand and seems to have now all but disappeared, is the jam sessions in the acoustic room. I used to see it all the tim3 before they tightened things up. A guitar store is not there so that you can go and jam on high end guitars they most likely can’t afford anyway. They are there to sell guitars, and not guitars with tons of shop wear. I don’t know if any good small specialty guitar stores that would allow that either, so why should GC? Most good shops will make sure you have no exposed buttons and install a Mylar cover to protect the pick guard.
So in my opinion, keep them locked up and out of reach. Then people who really want a higher end guitar in new condition can maybe find one. |
#44
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I don't disagree with you DesertTwang, but you try finding the kind of people it takes to do what you suggest. Sorry dude but hiring people who have "what it takes" and can SELL to the public...c'mon man.
How much would you want to get paid for your knowledge and skills to work retail hours? $20/ hour? ...more? $20/ hour for a 50 hour week figures out to 52,000/year. I'd venture to say that's probably around a Store Manager's base salary in a lot of cases. It would be real interesting to know what the independents pay their average salesperson per hour I'll bet it ain't no $20.
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Nothing bothers me unless I let it. Martin D18 Gibson J45 Gibson J15 Fender Copperburst Telecaster Squier CV 50 Stratocaster Squier CV 50 Telecaster Last edited by rokdog49; 02-12-2019 at 02:51 PM. |
#45
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I live near SoCalSurf. My local GC has had some mid-high acoustic guitars locked up for quite a while. What's weird is that some are left unlocked. Haven't yet figured out their logic.
Some of the worst are hung high out of reach, and some of the best left low and unlocked for anyone to damage. Don't know of any walking out in pants yet |