should i take guitar centers trade deal

[deshi00]

I recently bought an Acoustic b200h head, my current rig is a Hartke 3500vx combo, after the trade in the 15% trade in trade up deal, and what gc could offer me it was 240 for the amp meaning pay 60$ for the matching acoustic 410 cab, should I take the deal or keep trying for the 350$ sale of the hartke on craigs list?
opinions?

[bongomania]

How long have you had the combo up on CL? If it's been a few weeks and you want to move on, then maybe it's worth it to you to "lose" $100 and close the deal. If you only just put it up today, then there still might be somebody willing to pay you that $100.

[deshi00]

been up for almost a week, i know i could sell it for more than what they offered, just not sure if i have the patience to have to wait to use the new head lol

[NecroticImbecil]

To my mind, the only reason music stores have any used gear is the convenience. They offer you a sad, tiny amount, but they'll take your gear and give you something. On your own, you have to deal with Craigslist freaks leading you on, or coming to your house (now they will know your address and see what nice stuff you own). Or you can go Ebay, pay your fees, maybe not sell it, or maybe get ripped off.

Makes the GC deal seem almost worth it. There are the classifieds here once you pay your $20, but no guarantee your item sells. With all the higher end stuff here, you might hae to drop your price to be competitive. How bad do you want the cab, and want to get rid of the combo? If you really want it, do it. It'll be over and done, think of the time you won't have to spend standing on the virtual street corner trying to sel the thing on the internet.

[gregoire1]

Originally Posted by NecroticImbecil

To my mind, the only reason music stores have any used gear is the convenience. They offer you a sad, tiny amount, but they'll take your gear and give you something. On your own, you have to deal with Craigslist freaks leading you on, or coming to your house (now they will know your address and see what nice stuff you own). Or you can go Ebay, pay your fees, maybe not sell it, or maybe get ripped off.

Makes the GC deal seem almost worth it. There are the classifieds here once you pay your $20, but no guarantee your item sells. With all the higher end stuff here, you might hae to drop your price to be competitive. How bad do you want the cab, and want to get rid of the combo? If you really want it, do it. It'll be over and done, think of the time you won't have to spend standing on the virtual street corner trying to sel the thing on the internet.

This is so true! My first CL sale (a small ampeg head) sold in 12 hours for what I was asking. My second sale, days of emails, harassing calls,my add got taken down, never sold!

I think its ok to let GC rip you off, as long as you KNOW they're ripping you off.

[gregoire1]

But first, take your old head to a pawn shop, they may give you more.

[ausf]

It's a matter of convenience. It all worlds converge on a deal that you're happy with, pull the trigger. There's always a reason not to, you maybe could score an extra $80, maybe not. Maybe the Acoustic cab will be out of stock then too and you're out of luck for a while.

Time is usually a premium and spending great deals of it dealing with aggravation usually isn't worth it.

I traded in a HW1 P for $500 that the shop sold about a week later for $750. But the day I walked in with it, I walked out with a spankin' new Ray for $800. Could I have done better? maybe, but did I had a smile on my face (still do).

[jokerjkny]

whenever GC is involved, the answer is always no.

[dave64o]

Originally Posted by gregoire1

I think its ok to let GC rip you off, as long as you KNOW they're ripping you off.

Before people start down the "ripping you off" path, think about something. They're a business and part of their business is buying and selling used gear. In other words, when they give you money for your trade in, they are buying inventory that they must sell for a profit in order for the company to survive. Ripping people off is NOT the intent.

If you sold it yourself, you might have to do any of the following:
- pay for or at least place ads
- Field phone calls or emails from potential buyers
- Weed out likely scammers from those phone calls and emails, or maybe the odd one or two that you actually meet face to face that got through your screening process.
- Pay for packing materials, or at least arrange to get some for free, and then pack it yourself OR you pay someone like UPS to pack it for you.
- Make a trip to either meet the buyer or pay to ship the bass to the buyer
- Eat the transactions costs on Paypal

If you think of a trade in as a service for a convenience (i.e. you don't have to do any of the above things) and the cost of the service is the difference between their trade in offer and what you think you can reasonably get for it selling it on your own, then it's a simple decision. Is that cost difference worth it to you? Evaluate it that way and the decision is easy. Am I saying trade ins are the way to go? Hell no! I've never traded in gear. To me, the things I had to do to sell gear on my own were never big deals to me personally, so I've always sold on my own. But it's a "business decision", not an "are they ripping me off?" decision.

GC is a business and if they're going to stay in business they have to make smart business decisions - just like YOU would if YOU owned a business. So, please, let's not get into this "ripping off the little guy" nonsense. It's a tired, inaccurate cliche.

[Jaco who?]

Lower the CL price 50 bucks and see what happens after a week or so. You'd still be better off than what GC will pay, unless $60 dollars isn't worth a week of your time, which is something only you can decide......

[Dave M]

Originally Posted by dave64o

Before people start down the "ripping you off" path, think about something. They're a business and part of their business is buying and selling used gear. In other words, when they give you money for your trade in, they are buying inventory that they must sell for a profit in order for the company to survive.
....

GC is a business and if they're going to stay in business they have to make smart business decisions - just like YOU would if YOU owned a business. So, please, let's not get into this "ripping off the little guy" nonsense. It's a tired, inaccurate cliche.

+1

Whether it's GC, or your local mom & pop, people need to realize that when selling to a store you are dealing in a business environment. They are in business to sell goods, not acquire inventory.

If that doesn't appeal to one's sensibilities as a seller, then another market should be explored.

[SurferJoe46]

Having been in business of my own for years and working for others, I know that a 40% margin just barely pays the bills and although YOU may think it's a high profit - it ain't.

Factor in the big building - or at least the rent for it, the lights, air conditioning, payroll with the attachments of SS, SDI, FICA, IRA/401k co-payments and retirements (buying all those gold watches, f'ristance) and matching insurance for workman's comp and all and the margin is pretty small - it just goes on and on.

Advertisement, coupons (printing/mailing) window washers, carpet cleaners, catalogs, theft (shrinkage, it's called), defective 'you eat 'ms' that the manufacturer says is just 'tough' and 'that's the cost of doing business' to the company.

Don't forget lost revenue when a guitar gets damaged or even destroyed falling on the floor. Amps get wasted and cords 'mysteriously disappear" as do knobs, batteries, and I even saw the fuse stolen out of a GK.

Health insurance and co-pay fees, maternity costs (the boss didn't cause THAT!) and if the place is big enough, then a cafeteria and lunchroom - it goes on and on.

Then you've got bookkeepers to make sure the the IRS gets theirs and then - it just goes on and on.

Just crackin' the nut for the day requires KNOWING that the moment you open the doors you are lots of money in the red.

At what point do you get to see profit for the day? What time - hour - minute - second? As an owner I lost many nights and weeks of sleep worrying about that problem - but somehow it all worked out for me - fortunately!

So you walk in with your favorite guitar, to hear you talk about it and they are going to give you only a percentage of it's what you want for it for it's aesthetic worth and you think they get the best of the deal.

Yet they need to buy it (negative cash flow, moving the 'nut-time' up a few clicks) test it and usually in the progressive stores have their luthier check it out and re-string it after the funk is removed.

Then they have to hang it on the wall, taking up very much more valuable space where they COULD have a guitar that is worth much more with the mark-up and original cost to them since they can buy in boxcars full - and you think they should give you more?

When I owned my own shops, the boss I had worked for taught me a good lesson: "If my prices aren't the highest in town, just tell me. I'll raise them".

The problem is that, with scruples, morals and even if lacking them, you have to be in business TOMORROW for a number of reasons.

Warranties
Return customers with more items they buy
Feeding the rest of the world.

Yeah - FEEDING THE REST OF THE WORLD in the form of employees who depend on you staying in business; the manufacturers (who also have their employees) and the truck drivers who deliver the raw goods and then carry the completed item to the stores and warehouse.

Leave GC out of your complaints unless you think this whole house of cards is built on glue that you want to take away by complaining about a merchant taking advantage of you.

You live in the same house of cards too (same planet) - and you don't see the whole picture.

You have been so enriched by the transaction that you should be ashamed to even think these bad things in your mind.