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I'm not going to comment on his business practices, but I would say his prices are fair. His Deluxe version and higher end models are priced what I believe they should be. The sunbather has a lot of stuff in the box and if you look at another Beta Bass preamp (which is rackmount, but still the same features) is $547. Problem is he got very popular, very fast, because he had such low prices in the beginning and good looking products. He already had a large fan base when he raised the price so instead of his buisness growing along with the price, people still expected the lower prices, and ergo, only buy when a sale happens.
The bravado appeals to some people. Don't buy from him, someone else will. I won't, because the enclosures are cheesy.
I guess having an abominable personality goes with the territory of drawing Satanic imagery on a box all day long.
The finish rubbed off on my Hail Satan Deluxe from me just swiping my finger across it. It did sound huge though.
If you don't like people buying a pedal on sale and reselling it for the original price, then don't have sales. It really is that simple! If you are known to have sales on your product then people will wait for a sale. The problems that he is getting all twisted about are of his own making.
-Frank
-Frank
If somebody can get full price selling it on the flip, why can't he get the same price doing the same?
Most businesses only put things on sale to move inventory…not to be nice guys.
Doesn't sound so much as he's being taken advantage of as it is annoyance somebody is getting the price he can't.
Something to consider. A bird in the hand is key to sales. If he's going to build to order because each pedal he makes has to be paid for before it's built (because he can't aford or refused to stock inventory), he's going to be at a permanent disadvantage against the person who has one ready to ship. And considering the number of flakes selling boutique pedals, and the number of non-deliveries of goods paid for by small pedal builders, I might be far more comfortable paying a premium for one I know has already been built rather than get in a queue and wait for one to get built for me. Even if it cost less. That's simple economics and risk management.
If you're selling me something, I just want to buy it from you. I don't want to temporarily go into business with you - which is what you're basically doing dealing with a builder who works the way this guy does.
For the most part, that's not the way successful or sustainable businesses work. Unless you have such a stellar reputation and/or you're offering something so unique or clearly superior that your customers don't mind. Which is a pinnacle I don't think Abominable pedals or their creator are standing on just yet.
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DiabolusInMusic
Functionless Art is Merely Tolerated Vandalism
Reminds me of this guy.
"This job would be great if it wasn't for the @#$%ing customers."
"Which ones."
"All of them."
Funny side story, Jeff Anderson actually runs (or ran) a successful floor tile business post-Clerks. He is probably much better at business sense than the cat from Abominable.
well, while i agree in what you guys says about sells, bussiness and 2nd hand stuff, i can't apply the same logic when it comes to a company run by a single person, but i may be wrong.
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I guess making the warranty non-transferable is a way to keep some people away from used units. But why not design the warranty to cover the unit for a period of time regardless of how many owners it had? Make the warranty policy extremely simple without those stupid warranty registration cards… like a 5 year warranty starts from the day it was shipped to the first customer. Tracking the warranty period by serial number is extremely simple to do. If you care for every customer that owns your product (new or 2nd hand), you will be a better person and people will see this.
-Frank
-Frank
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Maybe this Abominable character deliberately makes statements like that to cause controversy? There's some guy who's running for the US president now who's motto has at times been “all publicity is good publicity”. It's granted that thinking and behaving that way can definitely backfire on you but before today I had no idea who Abominable even was.
I'm not necessarily saying I would buy their pedals though.
I'm not necessarily saying I would buy their pedals though.
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Well, the name of the company is...
a·bom·i·na·ble
əˈbäm(ə)nəb(ə)l/
adjective
adjective: abominable
causing moral revulsion.
synonyms: loathsome, detestable, hateful, odious, obnoxious, despicable, contemptible, damnable, diabolical; More
disgusting, revolting, repellent, repulsive, offensive, repugnant, abhorrent, reprehensible, atrocious, horrifying, execrable, foul, vile, wretched, base, horrible, awful, dreadful, appalling, nauseating;
horrid, nasty, disagreeable, unpleasant, distasteful;
informalInvalid Link Removed, shocking, godawful;
beastly;
datedcursed, accursed
"Caligula was among the most abominable figures in history"
antonyms: good, admirable
very bad or unpleasant.
a·bom·i·na·ble
əˈbäm(ə)nəb(ə)l/
adjective
adjective: abominable
causing moral revulsion.
synonyms: loathsome, detestable, hateful, odious, obnoxious, despicable, contemptible, damnable, diabolical; More
disgusting, revolting, repellent, repulsive, offensive, repugnant, abhorrent, reprehensible, atrocious, horrifying, execrable, foul, vile, wretched, base, horrible, awful, dreadful, appalling, nauseating;
horrid, nasty, disagreeable, unpleasant, distasteful;
informalInvalid Link Removed, shocking, godawful;
beastly;
datedcursed, accursed
"Caligula was among the most abominable figures in history"
antonyms: good, admirable
very bad or unpleasant.
I get that it was unprofessional, and yes he could just deal with the sale problem himself, but when it's a one-man operation I'm more willing to overlook outbursts like that. As long as he's not being racist/sexist/homophobic I can pretty much deal. I would still consider his stuff if I ever need a fuzz (though I honestly doubt I will).
And everyone does have the right to flip a pedal for more than what they paid for it, but my thought is that if its like new and the pedal is still in production you should still knock a bit off the price. Plus isn't there some sort of consumer ettiquette with small businesses that should be followed?
And everyone does have the right to flip a pedal for more than what they paid for it, but my thought is that if its like new and the pedal is still in production you should still knock a bit off the price. Plus isn't there some sort of consumer ettiquette with small businesses that should be followed?
Pretty basic economics. If it's worth the higher price, then don't put it on sale for less, unless you consider that a loss-leader to get your brand name "advertised."
Plenty of nice builders out there, even for used gear. 3Leaf and Fuzzrocious have been nice to me when communicating about second hand purchased gear. Mesa honors a 5 year warranty which is transferable.
Vote with your wallet. If you must have a clone of a dirt box, there are plenty of builders out there. Find one that you'd like to do business with. If you must have a pot leaf on your Green Russian, I'm sure there are plenty of artists who can help paint one on.
Plenty of nice builders out there, even for used gear. 3Leaf and Fuzzrocious have been nice to me when communicating about second hand purchased gear. Mesa honors a 5 year warranty which is transferable.
Vote with your wallet. If you must have a clone of a dirt box, there are plenty of builders out there. Find one that you'd like to do business with. If you must have a pot leaf on your Green Russian, I'm sure there are plenty of artists who can help paint one on.
If that's the case you're not applying the same logic. You're applying your own personal feelings to the situation.
Nothing wrong with that. But if so, you're speaking in terms of a personal relationship rather than a business relationship. And the issue here is about business.
Short answer? No. There's no such thing as consumer etiquette other than to pay the price the seller is demanding and to conduct your dealings in good faith.
When you sell something you normally transfer full title to the buyer unless you have some sort of contract or a covenant restricting subsequent resale or transfers. And those clauses are pretty difficult to enforce unless you can show a very compelling reason for needing such a provision. And while it's true you can put anything you want in a contract, it doesn't mean a court will automatically agree it's legal or enforceable. Usually the best you can do is get the right of first refusal to buy your product back from your customer if he or she wants to sell it.
Good point. Transferrable warranties can actually boost your sales because it makes you product even more valuable to the buyer. And you also get information about a potential future customer when your warranty gets transferred and registered to a new owner. Because if somebody liked one of your products enough to take a chance and buy a used one, there's a very good chance you make other things they will also be interested in acquiring.
