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Best Buy selling musical instruments

#61
Screw Best Buy....screw the big box.
We all need to shop indie & act locally, unless your favorite flavor is vanilla.

Best Buy has already done a number on the record biz, watch as we all bend over & let them do it to the instrument biz.

I just went through a very complicated gear trade/return situation at my local INDIE music store. Basically I traded for a new amp & ended up completely unsatisfied with it. It was not the fault of the store, but they bent over backwards to accommodate me to retain me as a customer.
Those drones in the blue shirts at Best Buy (or "Must Die") as I like to put it would have never done that.

Go ahead, tell me I'm a dinosaur & that I should "get used to it" or whatever. Yeah, this may kill all the mom & pops but not on account of me. I vote with my dollar & I sleep soundly at night knowing I've done my part to contribute to a healthy sales environment where there is variety, knowledge, & customer loyalty.

Keep feeding the machine & soon enough you'll be at home waiting for your next spoon feeding of the next musical flavor of the month while you plunk away on your plywood First Act guitar through your Gorilla amp & wonder where it all went wrong....
 
#63
so I am in the twin cities for a business trip "visiting music stores;)"
I picked up some of the local rags to see what stores were doing good advertising
there was a full page ad for the new best buy music store
the add looked great
here are a few of the company's list that I can remember

fender, DW, Gibson, Roland, yamaha, bc rich, zildijin, hal leonard

sorry that is all I can remember its very interesting if I have some time tommrow I am going to try to check it out
 
#64
202dy said:
Didn't see that. Who bought them? Do you have an online article? I'd love to read it. The only thing I've been able to find is an notice that GC purchased Music and Arts back in 2005, adding sixty two stores.
Click to expand...

Bain Capital - Mitt Romney's old firm.
http://www.reuters.com/article/mergersNews/idUSWNAS435520070919

This could be interesting. I would imagine that some (many?) of the partners of Bain are pretty good amateur muscians with plenty of disposable income so it will be interesting what direction they take GC.

As far as Best Buy getting into selling instruments, I haven't seen it yet other than about 30' of real inexpensive guiltars and keyboards. I'll have to stop in next time I swing by one - I have a gift certificate from Christmas buring a hole in my pocket.
 
#65
dangnewt said:
Bain Capital - Mitt Romney's old firm.
http://www.reuters.com/article/mergersNews/idUSWNAS435520070919

This could be interesting. I would imagine that some (many?) of the partners of Bain are pretty good amateur muscians with plenty of disposable income so it will be interesting what direction they take GC.

As far as Best Buy getting into selling instruments, I haven't seen it yet other than about 30' of real inexpensive guiltars and keyboards. I'll have to stop in next time I swing by one - I have a gift certificate from Christmas buring a hole in my pocket.
Click to expand...

The plot thickens. Thanks for the cite.
 
#66
The Best Buy in my town only sells the Starcasters (Fender), the Maestro's (Gibson), and a bunch of Silvertone stuff....nothing any higher end than that

We also have a Hastings which sells the entire Silvetone line as well as all the Dan-Electro pedals, strings, straps, music books, tab books, pics etc.

The population is roughly a little over 100,000, we have THREE Mom and Pop stores...Yes THREE...one specializes in band instruments (than you can rent to own) as well as a few low end Guitars, Basses, and Drum kits, which you can also rent to own...plus lots of sheet music

The other is really into high end stuff, especially in the piano, and acoustic department (Martin etc.), they also sell lots of sheet music, as well as tons of P.A. equipment. As far as basses go the have a few Fenders, lots of Ibanez, Godins, Yamaha, Ernie Ball, Squire. as far as amps go they deal mostly low end and mid priced stuff..Hartke, Fender, Roland, Peavey...not much in the Used department though. Pearl, and Ludwig drums. Run by a guy that does a lot of Church related Music

The other Store deals in High end stuff as well, especially amps, Marshall, Ampeg, Laney, Crate, Hi Watt, etc. As Far as Basses go they keep in stock ESP, Modulus, G & L, Dean, Peavey. He also deals A LOT of USED Stuff, as well as Tama and Sonor Drums (He will price match just about everything with both GC and MF) Run by a guy that plays bass in a classic Rock band, and is part owner in a local club. I personally prefer this store to everyone else in town (even though it is amaller than the other two) cause its like walking into your own house, not to mention his service is awesome. I often take my Pawn shop and E-bay finds to him he sets them up for free, as long as i buy my strings from him. (which makes me go back to buy all of my odds and ends, straps, picks, fret dressing, tubes, cords etc.)

not worried about BB unless they start carrying higher end stuff, but even then they don't give lessons, or have actual players working the instrument section, or have much of a selection...

I'm fairly sure the Mom and Pop stores aren't going anywhere anytime soon.
 
#67
lpdeluxe said:
If I pay an extra $20 for an axe, so be it. My community is a better place for them being there...but, as a matter of fact, they'll match internet prices without a quibble.

Riverside once had some pretty cool music stores. Paul Barth had a shop out in La Sierra, and there was an all-acoustic store downtown. =sigh=
Click to expand...

i just remembered the one good music store in riverside: wild west guitars. they don't carry a whole lot in the bass section, but what they have is the best. only the best fenders, plenty of ernie ball stuff and higher end ibanez. they are actually really cool and will price match, and are completely into customer service. they mostly do guitar stuff though and mostly through internet sales, which is why i forgot about them to begin with.
as for my earlier comment, i wasn't saying that i'm all about the big box retailer in general. i'm not. but i am for it when the ideal alternative (well stocked, customer service oriented mom and pop store) isn't even in the picture. i'm all for local shops if i have to pay a few bucks more, but i'm not going to shop there if they don't carry anything better than the local pawn shop
 
#69
just like some of the other ppl have said....it sucks that they are going to start doing this because they will scam a bunch of idiots into NOT going to a decent guitar store and getting something worthwhile instead of buying a "starcaster". And good luck asking any technical questions to the Best Buy 'experts".



Me: Yeah I'm looking to compare prices on in-ear monitoring headsets with sound isolation qualities...

Audio Salesman: Uhhh...what?
 
#70
Snakeman1066 said:
The Best Buy in my town only sells the Starcasters (Fender), the Maestro's (Gibson), and a bunch of Silvertone stuff....nothing any higher end than that

not worried about BB unless they start carrying higher end stuff, but even then they don't give lessons, or have actual players working the instrument section, or have much of a selection...

I'm fairly sure the Mom and Pop stores aren't going anywhere anytime soon.
Click to expand...

If soon is this year, you're right. If soon is in the next decade you might want to rethink it.

If you read your post, you will see that you are willing to support a Big Box if they start carrying gear the interests you.

As far as personnel goes, when there are few mom and pops, and those that are out there can only afford to hire a few people, do you think the staff at the Big Box will include some players? How about when the BB can afford to pay them a couple of bucks an hour more than mom and pop.

It's just a matter of time.
 
#71
202dy said:
If soon is this year, you're right. If soon is in the next decade you might want to rethink it.

If you read your post, you will see that you are willing to support a Big Box if they start carrying gear the interests you.
As far as personnel goes, when there are few mom and pops, and those that are out there can only afford to hire a few people, do you think the staff at the Big Box will include some players? How about when the BB can afford to pay them a couple of bucks an hour more than mom and pop.

It's just a matter of time.
Click to expand...


no i typed that i'm not worried about them taking any real business away from the Mon and Pop unless they start carrying higher end gear....

but even if they do, where do you think these people are going to go to get it serviced, repaired and re-strung? NOT BB. Where are they going to go to learn how to play their new cheap POS? Mom and Pop thats where!

besides i'm willing to pay a little extra for atmosphere not to mention all of the Mom and Pop stores in Town price match!
 
#72
Snakeman1066 said:
no i typed that i'm not worried about them taking any real business away from the Mon and Pop unless they start carrying higher end gear....

but even if they do, where do you think these people are going to go to get it serviced, repaired and re-strung? NOT BB. Where are they going to go to learn how to play their new cheap POS? Mom and Pop thats where!

besides i'm willing to pay a little extra for atmosphere not to mention all of the Mom and Pop stores in Town price match!
Click to expand...

Most certainly, you are. That's because you are a player. Music stores don't sell instruments and accessories to players. They sell these things to moms and dads and kids. The kids might grow up to be players. Most don't. If stores counted on players for business, they would be out of business in short order. There simply are more kids turning 14 and getting their first (and mostly only) guitar every year. Even if a player buys one guitar every year it won't match what the entry level does for a store. Besides, if you read the entire thread, Best Buy is carrying MIA Fender, Ibanez, etc. They are already selling gear for players.

It's just a matter of time.
 
#73
"Having a department store like BB come in and destroy that"


I think places like Guitar Center do the same thing. I hate those giant chain stores and would never buy anything from them. The handful of times I've been in one, their "knowledgeable staff" were anything but knowledgeable.

Give me a mom+pop music store. I'll pay more for good service/treatment...
 
#74
loendmaestro said:
Screw Best Buy....screw the big box.
We all need to shop indie & act locally, unless your favorite flavor is vanilla.

Best Buy has already done a number on the record biz, watch as we all bend over & let them do it to the instrument biz.

I just went through a very complicated gear trade/return situation at my local INDIE music store. Basically I traded for a new amp & ended up completely unsatisfied with it. It was not the fault of the store, but they bent over backwards to accommodate me to retain me as a customer.
Those drones in the blue shirts at Best Buy (or "Must Die") as I like to put it would have never done that.

Go ahead, tell me I'm a dinosaur & that I should "get used to it" or whatever. Yeah, this may kill all the mom & pops but not on account of me. I vote with my dollar & I sleep soundly at night knowing I've done my part to contribute to a healthy sales environment where there is variety, knowledge, & customer loyalty.

Keep feeding the machine & soon enough you'll be at home waiting for your next spoon feeding of the next musical flavor of the month while you plunk away on your plywood First Act guitar through your Gorilla amp & wonder where it all went wrong....
Click to expand...

+1.

Another thing about Big Box stores: they love to come to smaller towns and negotiate a sales or property tax break based on the new business they're going to bring in. Then they run the small shops out of town, ship their profits somewhere else, pay the locals minimum wage, and the town is the big loser.

So do yourself a favor: don't buy music gear at a chain. You're hurting yourself and your own environment when you do.
 
#75
lpdeluxe said:
+1.

Another thing about Big Box stores: they love to come to smaller towns and negotiate a sales or property tax break based on the new business they're going to bring in. Then they run the small shops out of town, ship their profits somewhere else, pay the locals minimum wage, and the town is the big loser.

So do yourself a favor: don't buy music gear at a chain. You're hurting yourself and your own environment when you do.
Click to expand...

Indeed sir.
I applaud all of your posts in this thread. We should have a beer & toast the independent retailer!
 
#78
202dy, you are obviously an intelligent person, and someone who has spent a fair amount of time evaluating the modern retail scene. I'll have to admit, I believe you are more right than wrong. That being said, small, independently owned stores that have worked hard to remain relevant in today's retail climate will continue to be successful. It will be the small, underfunded, outdated stores that will go away.

However, just because you and I say it is so, doesn't mean it has to happen. You want to keep your local music scene alive? Support it! Shop at the independent music stores. As has been mentioned already, most independent stores are extremely competitive with the big box stores. By the time you throw in decent service, repairs, etc many times the indie store is the same price or less than the big box boys.

202dy said:
The mom and pop music store is dead. It has been dead for the last ten years. Most of these stores do not turn a profit for their owner's beyond the owner's wages. That is the road to bankruptcy. Guitar Center, Best Buy, and the like are the wave of the future. Get used to it. It's not going away.
Click to expand...
 
#79
logicman69 said:
BB will but a bunch of Mom and Pop stores out of business, but it's the stores that refuse to change with the times that will go under.
Click to expand...

Agreed. The old saying keeps getting truer: "No one can put you out of business but yourself". If you are doing everything right, and offering a retail atmosphere that customers expect, you should continue to survive and thrive.
 
#80
You know, there is no right or wrong answer here. Personally, I shop at the local mom & pop (more accurately, father & son) but they simply can't satisfy all my needs. They are my first choice and I'll always do my best to give them my business. They are square shooters and have forgotten more about the music business than most people will ever know. They carry Fender, Peavey, Ibanez, Washburn and some B.C. Rich and a very limited selection of stompboxes. I recently went in to buy an MXR Dynacomp and an SKB 2-space road case. They had neither; they don't carry MXR snd don't keep SKB as a stock item. I wound up getting both from GC. The store in question is a very cool place...you get good answers and good service and they will match GC's prices; they will survive. The problem is that they can't match GC's inventory and wide product selection and, I think, that is probably the biggest issue for me.
 

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