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Mislabeled Instruments at Guitar Center (Resolved)

#41
selowitch said:
Every so often I come across mislabeled instruments on Guitar Center’s used site that are worth more than their price suggests. A few questions come to mind:
  1. If I want to buy such an item, should I call the store first to confirm what I’m buying?
  2. Is there anything ethically wrong with pulling the trigger and simply checking out?
  3. What is Guitar Center's obligation to me if I should buy it but they realize their mistake before shipping?
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There are a couple ways to look at the circumstance;

GC pays employees to manage their business, buying, selling and trading items to make a profit. If you provide guidance to GC about how they should price items without having seen or touched the item, you are either 1). providing GC free consultation that will increase their profit by resolving an error they made, with the increase in profit coming from you, or 2) providing them the opportunity to increase their profit on an item that was priced correctly for reasons you wouldn’t know until you received the item.

Their return policy would probably keep you from getting skinned, but a call to the store to determine the condition and functionality of the item would probably be worth the time to keep from wasting their time and yours. I’d recommend asking about the item, it’s condition, and function. I wouldn’t recommend discussing the market value of the item and how they have it (under)priced. You will probably find out the price isn’t a mistake and why it appears to be cheap....
 
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#42
selowitch said:
Yep, I took screenshots. Somehow I doubt that if they send me the correct (lower-value) item I won't be able to return it and exchange it for the higher-value one I intended to order ... but you never know.

In this case, the item is a guitar (I know, sacrilege). The listing is for a D'Angelico priced at $850 but the image is of a Rickenbacker worth about $1,700.

But by drawing attention to the transaction, don't I risk blowing a great deal?

But which state’s laws apply? The GC store in question is in one state and I am in another.

I think I have one of two main choices:
  1. Keep my mouth shut and hope they send me the Rickenbacker in the picture, in which case I keep it. If they send me the D'Angelico, I get to decide whether to keep or return it.
  2. I could call them today and inquire. That might increase the chances that I get the Rick, but it also might up the risk that they discover the discrepancy and cancel the order.
Click to expand...
You can check that particular store's used inventory to see if they have a Rick listed with the same picture but different price, or a picture of the D'Angelico labeled as a Rick. lol
 
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#45
Haven't read the whole thread but, its probably just a listing gaff; the wrong photograph got posted for the actual instrument listing. Does it have a listing number ? If so, you could ask about that number and see what instrument is actually listed for it. Or, take your chances and see what happens !
 
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#46
selowitch said:
We're talking about an item I just bought for $850 that is worth twice that—and which would normally sell at GC for that higher price.
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GC may leave some money on the table, but they don't loose money. If you paid $850, they paid $500 or so. Also, wholesale-retail is within +/- 100% when you are speculating on used gear. I've bought stuff from GC for substantially less than it would retail, like you. They made money anyway. They value cash flow, not instruments.
 
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#47
Always helps to look at the contract terms, and GC's terms say, among other things: "if an item's correct price is higher than our stated price, we will, at our discretion, either contact you for instructions before shipping or cancel your order and notify you of such cancellation. We apologize for any inconvenience."

https://www.guitarcenter.com/pages/purchase-terms

I had a related experience with a car in 2018, a fully-loaded Focus ST (MSRP about $32k) that was listed on the dealer's site for about $23k. I thought it might be a mistake, so I called to confirm and arrange a test drive with my wife. They confirmed the price, and I was set to go, but later got another call explaining it was a mistake, price always subject to change, etc. They offered a pretty nice deal, but it wasn't good enough.
 
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#48
Nedmundo said:
Always helps to look at the contract terms, and GC's terms say, among other things: "if an item's correct price is higher than our stated price, we will, at our discretion, either contact you for instructions before shipping or cancel your order and notify you of such cancellation. We apologize for any inconvenience."

https://www.guitarcenter.com/pages/purchase-terms
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Yup, I assumed as much. The question is simply what happens next.
 
#49
True story-
When a local guitar shop had been bought by a big chain they had a clearance sale on everything the big chain was not a dealer for.
I found a bass that was marked Spector bass $79. I looked at the back of the headstock and it said made in Czech Republic. Quick check on my phone identified it as a Spector Rebop (well over $1K.)
I took it to the counter and said- Is this REALLY $79? He scanned the tag and confirmed.
I paid the man. In the spirit of fairness I said- We now both agree that this bass belongs to me, right? He looked at me kinda weird and said 'Agreed.'
 
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#50
selowitch said:
Yup, I assumed as much. The question is simply what happens next.
Click to expand...

You don't get a free lunch?
Yel_wink.gif
 
#51
If you paid $850, they paid someone $450, maybe $500. I have no ethical dilemma with paying less than the going rate at Guitar Center. Their job is literally to know what they're buying and selling. They will not lose money on the sale and the person that sold it to GC knew what they were selling or maybe they sold a relative's gear for them and you will never be able to find out who they were. As far as ethics, I'd want to give whoever sold the item a few more buck rather than give GC a bigger profit on the sale. If I think they have the wrong tag on an item, I'll check the website to see if it is the same item.
 
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#52
So Anyway, 'You Can't Cheat An Honest Man'... or something like that. ;)
Interested to see what they send you.
81ec4d8c381923ca87b646e075b0c83f.jpg
I recently saw a D'Angelico Premier bass for $500 but thought they had mislabeled the scale at 35"... I thought all their hollow bodies were 32". Turns out the 35" scale is correct for the Premier model. Almost ordered it thinking they didn't know what they had... but they did.
 
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#53
I'm persuaded that there's no real problem with buying the Rick from GC at $850 ... but whether that actually happens is far from 100% likely.
The item pictured appears to be a Rickenbacker 360W. Really nice. So nice, in fact, that assuming it's in playable condition I'd be inclined to keep it if that's what I receive.
Call it a 50th birthday present from GC to their good friend, moi.
 
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#54
Paulabass said:
True story-
When a local guitar shop had been bought by a big chain they had a clearance sale on everything the big chain was not a dealer for.
I found a bass that was marked Spector bass $79. I looked at the back of the headstock and it said made in Czech Republic. Quick check on my phone identified it as a Spector Rebop (well over $1K.)
I took it to the counter and said- Is this REALLY $79? He scanned the tag and confirmed.
I paid the man. In the spirit of fairness I said- We now both agree that this bass belongs to me, right? He looked at me kinda weird and said 'Agreed.'
Click to expand...

I don't usually hit going out of business sales, but I think the last one I went to was for MARS (kinda miss them). Prices were actually higher than before the going out of business sale, but were flying out the door as people were paying 40% off prices that were doubled.
 
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