Well put! Had to return my new Ric. Horrible for the price!
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I’m guessing they’re worried that Chinese made Rickenbackers would blow away the ones made here 
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Have you all never heard the phrase "If it ain't broke, don't fix it?"
They have the reputation, the history, the demand, they sailed through the biggest recession in recent history without breaking a sweat.
I don't think John Hall needs business advice from the likes of us.
Now Gibson on the other hand...
They have the reputation, the history, the demand, they sailed through the biggest recession in recent history without breaking a sweat.
I don't think John Hall needs business advice from the likes of us.
Now Gibson on the other hand...
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Yeah. Supply and demand are important, and controlling scarcity is one way to manage the market value. We see it with diamonds and gasoline. We know more could be released to the public at a cheaper price, but the folks in control aren’t interested in doing that.
This point has maybe been made already in this thread, but for better or worse there is something to be said about the "prestige" of a brand, and that being muddied by a wide variety of cheaper versions that, at least at first glance, are barely distinguishable from the high-end versions.
If you see someone on stage playing a Fender, or walk into a store and see one hanging on the wall, unless you read a tag or really know your stuff you have no idea if that instrument is worth $500 or over $2000. Now, you can of course go into "who cares just use it to make music" but that's not the point here. Strats/Teles/P's/J's are incredibly accessible, which for better or worse lowers those instruments' "brand value." Fender to their credit has largely embraced this and markets their instruments as "working-class-guitars" so good for them.
The sort of middle-ground is what Gibson has largely done with Epiphone. Do you really want a Les Paul or SG or Thunderbird but aren't willing to pay for a $1,000+ instrument? Sure no problem, but the catch is the headstock doesn't say Gibson, it says Epiphone. For a lot of people that matters a lot, and frankly one of the biggest reasons they'd get a Gibson over an Epiphone may not be for a distinct improvement in the feel/tone/quality of the instrument, but simply what the headstock says and how it makes them (and others around them) feel.
Rickenbackers have an incredibly distinct look and tone, and they have had the policy over the years that if you want that look and tone, you need to get the real deal. No version that looks the same but was made overseas with cheaper parts - no version that looks almost the same but with cheaper parts and a different brand name on the headstock - it's all or nothing. You don't have to agree with that approach, but it certainly has kept the "prestige" of the Rickenbacker brand high.
If you see someone on stage playing a Fender, or walk into a store and see one hanging on the wall, unless you read a tag or really know your stuff you have no idea if that instrument is worth $500 or over $2000. Now, you can of course go into "who cares just use it to make music" but that's not the point here. Strats/Teles/P's/J's are incredibly accessible, which for better or worse lowers those instruments' "brand value." Fender to their credit has largely embraced this and markets their instruments as "working-class-guitars" so good for them.
The sort of middle-ground is what Gibson has largely done with Epiphone. Do you really want a Les Paul or SG or Thunderbird but aren't willing to pay for a $1,000+ instrument? Sure no problem, but the catch is the headstock doesn't say Gibson, it says Epiphone. For a lot of people that matters a lot, and frankly one of the biggest reasons they'd get a Gibson over an Epiphone may not be for a distinct improvement in the feel/tone/quality of the instrument, but simply what the headstock says and how it makes them (and others around them) feel.
Rickenbackers have an incredibly distinct look and tone, and they have had the policy over the years that if you want that look and tone, you need to get the real deal. No version that looks the same but was made overseas with cheaper parts - no version that looks almost the same but with cheaper parts and a different brand name on the headstock - it's all or nothing. You don't have to agree with that approach, but it certainly has kept the "prestige" of the Rickenbacker brand high.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
Rickenbacker wants to make everyone "play authentic"...
No, but it's what they offer, and they have more than enough takers.
In the old Rickenbacker forum John Hall said he would never have guitars made offshore. When you see a Ric onstage, you know it's made in the USA, same with a Gibson, can't say the same for a Fender.
Many good points here. So, with this in mind, they could make a Made-In-Indonesia bolt-on version, with Ric® painted on the headstock instead of a Rickenbacker truss cover. Then maybe someday I can find a used one on Fleabay for $500 instead if a USA Rickenbacker for $1800.
Exactly. Ric won't cheapen their own brand by putting out a budget version and won't let anyone else cheapen their brand by counterfeiting.
All this speculation that they don't know what they're doing and are running their company into the ground is beyond silly.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
I know that, but I couldn't resist to the joke.
You are one of the few. I just love these threads.
This, and well said. As far as Godin, they make very good instruments, perhaps objectively better than Rickenbacker. But they are without a doubt not as unique as a Rick. Everyone here knows that if Godin knew how to get the same market premium as Rickenbacker, they’d already be doing it. Rickenbacker doesn’t know how to be a better Fender than Fender, so they do something else. And they’re very good at that something else, regardless of how one feels about their quality and price point.
I've read everything and still do not know if Mercedes is overrated or not. What a waste of time, I am very disappointed. 
I'm pretty sure Ben Hall is set to inherit the business, nice having something that profitable handed to you in a silver platter. I shoulda picked my parents more carefully!
Daimler Benz lost their arse over that deal. They were lucky it didn’t pull the entire company down.
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