Guitar Center at it again

[Ghastly]

Well the "it" as I see it is that something sold online and the item was carelessly left in the showroom. Only taken off the wall when someone goes to buy it in person and the GC guy at the computer ready-ing the sale notices it's been sold online already. If something sells online, a notification should be sent immediately and they should take the item off the wall (the same day) to avoid any hassles like this, in addition to getting the item ready to ship to the online buyer. Maybe this was a bad coincidence and that's what actually happened, but I bet a few days went by at least and they only noticed when it was scanned for sale in the store.

 

[brianrost]

I was getting ready to buy it and then the salesman tells me it's already been sold online and takes it out of my hands and walks away lol.

That works both ways, I was reading here at TB a thread about a rare Pedulla bass someone saw listed online at GC. I looked and saw it was at my local store, so I immediately drove down, tried it out and bought it.

I eventually sold it to another TBer so hopefully my sin is forgiven.

 

[DigitalMan]

I was walking up to the counter with it and told them I was going to buy it

And unfortunately someone else already owned that bass. It sucks but there isnt anything that they could have done about it at that point. If I were you the one question I would have asked would have been exactly when was the bass sold. If it was in the past hour then no harm, no foul. If it was three days ago then I would find fault in their delay in taking the bass off the floor which directly contrributed to wasting your time and causing disappointment.

 

[Mammoth_Bass]

I was in GC recently because of a bass I saw on there. I go in and test it out and I was getting ready to buy it and then the salesman tells me it's already been sold online and takes it out of my hands and walks away lol.

Was a nice bass as well. A Warwick Streamer LX. Apparently it was the bassist from Bruno Mars, he brought 3 in and that was the only one left.

Ugh I despise them sometimes. Maybe they did the right thing and I'm just being bitter

This makes me laugh because I once purchased a used bass online then days later I was told it was sold in store!

 

[catcauphonic]

I treat GC like Walmart, I don't expect good service or product knowledge, so I'm never disappointed, and occasionally I am pleasantly surprised when some actually lifts a finger.

Yea, I don't go to either of them unless I absolutely have to. I'd rather pay a little more at a mom and pop store

 

[Mammoth_Bass]

no difference up here in the north shore danvers, Nashua Portsmouth bass section gone down hill nothing but fire wood

I live in Danvers!

 

[1954bassman]

I go to the GC in Asheville, NC & North Charlotte. I am not a mega customer, but both stores have top marks from me. I do have certain staff members I seek out if I am seriously shopping, and a couple of sales people I avoid. I have bought used stuff on line with no issues, and returned items with no hassle.

I do however try to buy from the local brick & mortar here in Hickory most of the time.

 

[Old Garage-Bander]

I bought a Rum 200 combo from GC this week and it was all good.
There was some issue with not getting the order confirmation by email.
I emailed the general customer service to verify that I hadn't mistyped my email during the order process.
By the time it was sorted out two folks had worked on the problem, another had sent the info to me at my confirmed email, and still another was following up to be sure I was happy with how stuff was handled.
I had the amp shipped to the store and was tracking UPS for shipping progress.
The amp got to the store just after lunch. By 6 pm, I had not gotten a come get it email.
Called the store. Sales person said yes it was here, come on down. He just asked for my name, found me in the computer and brought out the amp. I asked if I could try it out? "Sure no problem, I'll set it up while you find a bass to try." So no hassles, and problems that I may have caused were fixed and all is well.

 

[ianuaditis]

And unfortunately someone else already owned that bass. It sucks but there isnt anything that they could have done about it at that point. If I were you the one question I would have asked would have been exactly when was the bass sold. If it was in the past hour then no harm, no foul. If it was three days ago then I would find fault in their delay in taking the bass off the floor which directly contrributed to wasting your time and causing disappointment.

They absolutely could have done something - they either failed to make the right customer service decision and sell the merchandise to the guy on site, or the company failed to set up adequate systems to prevent this scenario from occurring.

I worked for a retailer with 'buy online/pickup in store,' and if we got an order over the computer and the merchandise was in a customer's hands on the sales floor, they would at least get right of first refusal. We only accepted CC or paypal for online orders, which both allow automated refunds for online orders that couldn't be filled, and to me its worse customer service to alienate someone physically in your shop, rather than someone buying online. Not only that but you miss out on the opportunity to throw in some strings, cords, picks, whatever else. You can't overestimate the importance of face time with the client, not to mention the potential negative impact on social media like this thread.

The way it would go for us was the customer ordered the item, we got a notice on the computer, then we picked and processed the order, removing it from the sales floor, and THEN the customer got a confirmation email that it was ready for pickup.

The systems retailers use should (and usually do) allow for the inherent lag between me sitting on my computer clicking some buttons and people running a sales floor where they have other responsibilities besides constantly checking the computer, picking the merchandise, and processing online orders. I just checked out a pedal that is in stock at my local GC and if I order online I won't be able to get it for 3-7 days, so it seems like they allow some kind of processing time.

At my store, if 6 hours went by from when the order was placed and we did not do the step to pick it (i.e. hold the merchandise off the floor,) the customer's order was cancelled, and all money refunded. This happened pretty often, with the usual cause being another customer bought it before we could pick it.

It's possible that GC has similar systems and this store just blew it. In that case it's 'this guitar center at it again.'

 

[Herrick]

And unfortunately someone else already owned that bass. It sucks but there isnt anything that they could have done about it at that point. If I were you the one question I would have asked would have been exactly when was the bass sold. If it was in the past hour then no harm, no foul. If it was three days ago then I would find fault in their delay in taking the bass off the floor which directly contrributed to wasting your time and causing disappointment.

Yeah without the answer to that question it is unknown if Guitar Center screwed up or not.

 

[DigitalMan]

They absolutely could have done something - they either failed to make the right customer service decision and sell the merchandise to the guy on site, or the company failed to set up adequate systems to prevent this scenario from occurring.

I worked for a retailer with 'buy online/pickup in store,' and if we got an order over the computer and the merchandise was in a customer's hands on the sales floor, they would at least get right of first refusal. We only accepted CC or paypal for online orders, which both allow automated refunds for online orders that couldn't be filled, and to me its worse customer service to alienate someone physically in your shop, rather than someone buying online. Not only that but you miss out on the opportunity to throw in some strings, cords, picks, whatever else. You can't overestimate the importance of face time with the client, not to mention the potential negative impact on social media like this thread.

The way it would go for us was the customer ordered the item, we got a notice on the computer, then we picked and processed the order, removing it from the sales floor, and THEN the customer got a confirmation email that it was ready for pickup.

The systems retailers use should (and usually do) allow for the inherent lag between me sitting on my computer clicking some buttons and people running a sales floor where they have other responsibilities besides constantly checking the computer, picking the merchandise, and processing online orders. I just checked out a pedal that is in stock at my local GC and if I order online I won't be able to get it for 3-7 days, so it seems like they allow some kind of processing time.

At my store, if 6 hours went by from when the order was placed and we did not do the step to pick it (i.e. hold the merchandise off the floor,) the customer's order was cancelled, and all money refunded. This happened pretty often, with the usual cause being another customer bought it before we could pick it.

It's possible that GC has similar systems and this store just blew it. In that case it's 'this guitar center at it again.'

You can't sell something that someone else already owns. That's called stealing and it is unethical. Period.

 

[Pete Bretzke]

I treat GC like Walmart, I don't expect good service or product knowledge, so I'm never disappointed, and occasionally I am pleasantly surprised when some actually lifts a finger.

You said it! Go in expecting the worse and be happy when you get something better. I would certainly prefer to shop at locally owned businesses, but GC has made very smart business decisions which keep prices low. Sadly, the level of service is usually much lower than the prices.

 

[/\/\3phist0]

Idk where you got that from, the two basses and one guitar I've put on layaway at two different guitar centers were kept in the back

I have it from personal first hand experience, it's well known that they put stuff out that's still on police hold.

 

[1stnamebassist]

View attachment 883339 Heres my new 4003w! Swapped in a chrome thumb bezel and a pearloid pickguard from Pickguardian to try to bring out the fret marker inlays some more. Neck like a baseball bat but damn this thing growls. Can i get a number?

I have it from personal first hand experience, it's well known that they put stuff out that's still on police hold.

I believe this could be true, but what is the reason behind this if someone has already put money down on it? I mean when I went to get mine nobody was aware that half the money was put down to hold it until the police hold was up. They could have easily sold that out from under me. I don't think my bass would be safer out on the floor of GC where every slap happy kid that comes in can start wailing on it!

 

[Ron Johnson]

Well at least you got to try out that Warwick and figure out that you like it. Now you can just find it at a different store, and probably for a better price. I do warn you to never buy a floor model though because I've witnessed floor models getting dropped many times and then sold. You don't want to risk finding a crack or something after you buy it. Just have some patience and tell them to order a new one for you; it will be the same price, but untouched.

 

[electracoyote]

It's the modern retail era. The thing you are demo'ing in the store could be purchased by someone online. It is the reality. And the employees in the store have no way of knowing if you are going to buy it just because it's in your hands. How could they possibly block an online purchase of the item? Just to have you set it down, say, "I'll think about it," and waltz out of the store while they lose the online sale? People who are suggesting that are making no sense whatsoever.

Obviously, the moral of the story is, if you see something on the used rack that seems too good to be true at GC, you had best put your money down pronto and stop pussyfooting around. Buy now, ask questions later. If you get buyer's remorse, they have a liberal return policy, even on used gear.

The GC bashing just gets weaker and weaker.

 

[SirMjac28]

I don't have a GC story but I noticed I haven't wote the word "Luciferous" in quite some time and wanted to take this opportunity to do so.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

At my local GC, there is a 30 day hold due to county laws. They have everything out in the cases or on the walls, but it lists an "Available" date on the tag. You can buy it and they'll hold it for the remainder, but there is a possibility that it's stolen and will be snagged by the police. You'll obviously get your money back and that's better than ending up with a stolen item that someone later recognizes when you're on stage.

 

[electracoyote]

it is a sad joke on the buyer to allow him/her to put a deposit on something that may end up unavailable anyway if it turned up as stolen.

Doesn't bother me one bit. The odds are greatly against it being stolen, and I would appreciate the opportunity to jump first in line. If it's stolen, refund my deposit, no harm no foul. I didn't want stolen property and wasn't going to get it either way. I don't feel like I've been made the butt of a joke at all.

 

[Frenchy-Lefty]

I once ordered a tiny part for my lefty Takamine at GC in Reno and the guy in charge of ordering went out of his way to get it for me when no online store would bother helping me.

All this to say, I am glad there are still some brick and mortar stores, some employees who care - I know it is a little hit-and-miss with GC staff- and more bashing thread like this will just contribute to shut down the last places where you can actually walk in and try a guitar.