What Happened with Big Box Music Stores?

[MultiScaleMale]

Was looking at Sweetwater and Reverb to show that supply isn't there, but I think supply may be returning to normal levels.

 

[6Bass101]

6Bass101 has an interesting idea about charging folks to try out gear. I wonder where the line would be for people to cross the psychological barrier of paying for the service independently of the price of the gear. I imagine it would only work for very high-end gear. I also think that some people would feel as if they didn’t have to be as careful with stuff since they were “paying for the privilege.” That could lead to a lot of cosmetic or worse damage that would then have to be depreciated.

The way I see it, by the time an item has seen enough cosmetic wear, the earnings from the “try out” fees could offset selling it at a discount.

As far as the psychological barrier, I’m sure some business minded folks could figure that out. Anecdotally, I’ve considered offering $10-$20 to a local seller to let me try out a pricey bass that I wanted to play, but was mostly sure I would not buy.

 

[LBS-bass]

The way I see it, by the time an item has seen enough cosmetic wear, the earnings from the “try out” fees could offset selling it at a discount.

As far as the psychological barrier, I’m sure some business minded folks could figure that out. Anecdotally, I’ve considered offering $10-$20 to a local seller to let me try out a pricey bass that I wanted to play, but was mostly sure I would not buy.

Based on the entitlement I would see in so many customer, I'm guessing many would be a hard "no" on the concept of paying to try something out. And the next thing they'd do after being told they couldn't try an instrument would be to go online and trash your business.

 

[4StringsEnough]

You reap what you sow. Not enough people supporting local music shops. To take up a salesman's time with no intent to buy, to gain their knowledge and use the store for demos before buying online is tantamount to theft and is the reason why stores are closing. Use them or lose them.

 

[bassdude51]

For every one expensive bass sold, 30 cheapies were purchased. So, cheapies make up the inventory, don't they?

 

[Lackey]

Yep, must be lookers and testers but no takers that have ruined things.

20 years ago the Rancho Cucamonga CA Guitar Center had an enclosed bass room with Mesa, Eden, GK, Ampeg gear, including full tube heads. For basses, full line of MIA Fender, extensive Warwick, and even a few Pedulla Thunderbolts. When I made it out to the Hollywood store, and the Sam Ash across the street, they had Foderas....

Now, it's basically locked up, poorly setup Ibanez, MarkBass, a few Warwicks....

I remember Mars Music having a full range of Modulus and Zon, very exciting. Of course they've been gone forever now.

It just must not be worth it, on any level. Shame. I'd love to have a local place selling great gear with good setup tech. Just doesn't pay I guess. Curious how long the Dunable shop down the street from me lasts.

 

[Greg Pruitt]

That’s what killed the camera store I worked in, people would come in to try out cameras and lenses, ask me a million questions about the compatibility with this and that, say thank you and buy it online somewhere, we basically became a showroom for Amazon, can’t run a business doing that and I would imagine it’s a similar situation in music stores.

There was a fantastic Camera store here in Chicago called Helix Photo Art. 4 or 5 floors of everything you can think of, including rentals. When I worked in corporate America, we would rent all kinds of gear. They are out of business now and sold their inventory to other sellers through the Mid-West. Online sales put Helix out of business.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

The internet changes everything. - Used to be that a store had to have a variety of instrument s for people to try so they could see what all their choices were. Putting nice pictures on the internet and having efficient distribution coupled with quantity buying power is much more cost effective than buying and maintaining an inventory at the margin dictated by the internet seller. So, now a regular guitar store has to buy and maintain inventory, and match online prices or loose the sale.
Also, music stores take the hit when a new instrument gets banged up when some bone head treats rough while they are are trying it out.
I do miss the days when even guitar center had 3 or 4 brands of bass amps, and a wall with more basses. I have a GC right by my office and have gone in at lunch time a few different times in the last couple months. Nothing they have inspires me to pick it up and play it. It feels like what’s left after the really good stuff is gone at a going out of business sale.
Supply chain shortages are also a thing. It’s just not going to be the way it used to be ever again.

This is true. Brick and mortar is expensive. So is having a lot of inventory. I would not be surprised if a lot of online sales come directly from the factory.

 

[higain617]

Where is best store in all of USA to find the top basses now? I remember nice one in Seattle since 20 years ago, but is gone last visit I make. If you could only enter one store in whole country to find dream bass, which you choose these days?

It's moved to West Seattle and shares a space with Thunder Road Guitars.

You can still go into the GC of a major metropolitan area to purchase a Ric or $7k LP Custom with a poor setup.

 

[Wambemando]

Guitar Center posts all seem to be rants of perceived injustice.

10 years ago I decided to purchase my first Les Paul at GC.
I had ordered a LP Special, but when I arrived at the store, the manager got a hold of my ear.
He told me that instead of ordering online, I should have come into the store first because they have deals that don't make it to the net.
He then proceeded to show me a LP Studio that was on sale, and he said that he would sell it to me for the same price as the Special.
Well, that certainly sounded good.
I wasn't well-versed with LPs at the time (naive), but I did my best to inspect the guitar.
I noticed that the satin finish was worn to the wood in some spots, so I asked him about it. He replied "Oh, that's the 'road worn' look like Fender does".
I was aware of Fender's Road Worn series, but I couldn't recall Gibson doing that (I had no idea about Gibson aged finishes).
Back then, I was a smart phone holdout, and getting online with my flip phone took forever, so my suspicions had to wait.
Walking out the door, I felt like I got a good deal, but I was still skeptical of the manager's story.
When I got home, I jumped online and started researching.
I immediately discovered that he was totally full of sh*t about "road worn". He was merely trying to get rid of a banged-up floor model.
Well, needless to say, I WAS FURIOUS.
I waited for my skilled-typist wife to get home, so I could dictate my response to GC corporate about the matter. It also helped to have her type it so she could retract some of my more colorful sentiments.
They responded almost immediately.
They apologized and told me they would replace it with an immaculate model.
When I went into the store to get it, the manager avoided me and looked like a puppy that just got kicked. Haha.
It worked out for the better because I got the newer spec'd version with a maple top.
So, in the end, they made good - but I've never looked at them the same.

 

[Rolling Thunder]

10 years ago I decided to purchase my first Les Paul at GC.
I had ordered a LP Special, but when I arrived at the store, the manager got a hold of my ear.
He told me that instead of ordering online, I should have come into the store first because they have deals that don't make it to the net.
He then proceeded to show me a LP Studio that was on sale, and he said that he would sell it to me for the same price as the Special.
Well, that certainly sounded good.
I wasn't well-versed with LPs at the time (naive), but I did my best to inspect the guitar.
I noticed that the satin finish was worn to the wood in some spots, so I asked him about it. He replied "Oh, that's the 'road worn' look like Fender does".
I was aware of Fender's Road Worn series, but I couldn't recall Gibson doing that (I had no idea about Gibson aged finishes).
Back then, I was a smart phone holdout, and getting online with my flip phone took forever, so my suspicions had to wait.
Walking out the door, I felt like I got a good deal, but I was still skeptical of the manager's story.
When I got home, I jumped online and started researching.
I immediately discovered that he was totally full of sh*t about "road worn". He was merely trying to get rid of a banged-up floor model.
Well, needless to say, I WAS FURIOUS.
I waited for my skilled-typist wife to get home, so I could dictate my response to GC corporate about the matter. It also helped to have her type it so she could retract some of my more colorful sentiments.
They responded almost immediately.
They apologized and told me they would replace it with an immaculate model.
When I went into the store to get it, the manager avoided me and looked like a puppy that just got kicked. Haha.
It worked out for the better because I got the newer spec'd version with a maple top.
So, in the end, they made good - but I've never looked at them the same.

Wow. Reminds me of the Homer Simpson "speed holes" bit by a used car salesman selling him a car.

 

[logdrum]

Grandma's Music in Albuquerque was a really great store and I bought some high end basses there, even a Ritter which I sold and made profit on as well as Yamaha TRB6 JP. I also got a EBMM Stingray 5, Fender US actives and a Mesa tube bass am[ as well as my current EA cabs.

Their price competed with online stores

They were what you call a small town big box music. Then they just closed shop one day without a discernible sign of decline. They were in a prime location as well and probably the offer to buy the building was too much to ignore. Their manager wanted to buy it but the negotiations never even took place. Hmm it seems there is a website now and judging by the address, it wasthe same manager I was talking about.

But when they were around, it was a great store, staffed by some knowledgeable people. Very welcoming.

 

[sonic 7]

I remember getting catalogs from Musicians Friend back in the 1970s and thinking why the heck would anyone buy gear this way when I could just go to my local Sam Ash and get anything that I could possibly want. Now it’s the complete opposite.

 

[Dincrest]

@biobass

I remember Bass Specialties in Bensalem. Great place! I've bought some nice gear from there, including a pair of preowned Bergantino 1x12s that I still have.

I like to support mom 'n pop brick 'n mortar shops as much as I can since I feel like I can't get a good sense of how a bass will balance on me unless I strap it on. But, yeah, they're in decline. One shop near me is liquidating their inventory, selling their storefront, and focusing on a mobile repair business since repairs have been more profitable for them than retail. Another shop, where I got my latest LTD, has a modicum of quality piece in their inventory, but their big money maker is lessons.

 

[kevmac]

Wow! Sorry to hear of that sort of thing happening so brazenly. Didn't anyone ever have a "you break it you buy it" policy in place? You scratch it and you pay for the repair, etc? I never ventured into stores all that much, but I remember looking around for such policy signs and wondering why there never seemed to be any. I know there can be restocking fees on some returned merchandise. And, I mean, we are sometimes talking about expensive merchandise that one is graciously and helpfully allowed to test out, much as a car (whatever the price) at a dealership.

I was at a GC about a year ago and there was a Warwick thumb on the wall .I was slightly interested in purchasing it so I asked to see it.It had terrible scratches on it especially in the back from belt buckles. I asked for they'd discount for this almost $3000 bass I was given a flat out no.
Nobody in their right mind will ever buy it.I can't understand letting 16 yr olds that have no intention of buying these types of instruments play them.

 

[whero]

"Back in the day" when I was first getting into music (the early-mid 1970s) there were not many music stores around in New Zealand. Growing up in Auckland was an advantage as, being New Zealand's biggest city, at least there were store. There were probably small towns all over the country where people would have to drive a couple of hours to get their hands on a new instrument.

Back then, the Eady brothers were the big names in music stores in Auckland. Lewis Eady was probably more well known for pianos and classical instruments, while Sydney Eady was more about folk and rock instruments. My father knew the family and worked in Lewis Eady's for a while. I hung out at Sydney Eady's all the time. They had a moderate range, mostly lower and mid-range gear. As a high school kid, my first new bass, new amp, and all my effects and cables came from there. What I remember most was that the staff were really knowledgeable, and very friendly. They knew you by name and knew what you were interested in, and were happy to let you sit there and try stuff for hours. Lewis Eady is still operating but Sydney Eady went out of business at least 30 years ago, probably more.

Then Big City Music opened. They had a big store, with a lot of stock. This is where I first saw real high-end basses. I spent a bit of time,and a bit of money, there over the years. The staff really knew their stuff, but they always seemed a little aloof, like they were doing you a big favour by talking to you, and you had to ask to take anything off the wall, and the staff would stand there and watch you the whole time, like they were making sure you didn't damage it. I don't know exactly when they shut down - I had moved away from Auckland by then. But I did find this ad online, from July 1982.

I moved away from New Zealand in the late 1980s and although I came back most years to visit family, I didn't come back to live until the early 2000s. By then, a lot of the independent stores had closed down. There are now mainly chains of stores here; Rockshop, KBB Music, MusicWorks - a few of them owned by the same parent company. There are still plenty of mom and pop stores around, but they tend to be low-end gear or specialise in certain (obscure) instruments. And the big box stores all seem to have the same gear. Fender/Squier, Ibanez, Aria, a few Warwicks and Gibson/Epiphones, the odd Rickenbacker, brands like ESP and Jackson. I see Sadowsky on their website, but never seen one in the shop. Far more low and mid-range gear than high-end.

Why? Because there's a bigger market for lower end gear. They sell more Toyotas than Ferraris. And they sell more Squiers than Fender Custom Shop guitars.

 

[Neil Folkard]

I think it also depends on who runs the store. There is a local L&M north of Toronto, that is managed by a bass player and they stock F basses, Foderas, Dingwalls and would be happy to order whatever you wanted.

 

[kevmac]

Another 'tell' with the Big Box stores and the margins they're making:. Just like car dealers who'll sell you a car 'at invoice' just so they can bury you with financing your purchase (which is where they murder unwary consumers who didn't do their homework on car loans and laugh all the way to the bank), why do you think the BB stores advertise payments or their own credit card ?

And how about the online sites that offer " no interest" buy now pay later plans. No interest sure but how about the " plan fee" that works out to around the same as 20% interest?

 

[COYS]

I’d say that they are probably better off having people order and pay a deposit or pay in advance for high end stuff. Tire kickers cost them money, and this assures only those who are truly serious about buying get their hands on a unit.

Building enough for dealer stock all around a country or several countries would take a lot of units, and the market for very high end stuff is both very small and very particular.

Better to sell with a custom shop or a by-order-only model for all invoked, except the aforementioned shop wear applying tire kickers

Apart from this, I don’t understand the “well I go to Bob’s and they can order whatever you want.” Yes, I too order whatever I want… why need I involve the dealer at all?

 

[TJH3113]

Millions of Fender and Ibanez buyers out there.
Thousands of Zon and Modulus buyers.
Other than that, the Guitar Center near me has 100 + basses, including...

Wow! What part of Jersey are you in? Paramus has nothing like that