Members leakyfaucet Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 I was wondering how many guitars you would have to buy/sell to get the fender dealership discount on guitars. Or if you know where to get this information. Some friends of mine are thinking of opening a small store. Please don't just tell me that we'll never be able to compete with the big-time stores like GC and Sam Ash. That's not what I'm asking. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 Wouldn't Fender be the place to ask? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members leakyfaucet Posted July 18, 2007 Author Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 I suppose, although they don't have any forums for such a topic... And they're a pretty dead forum in general. Don't see a link to talk to someone in the company, either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 I suppose, although they don't have any forums for such a topic... And they're a pretty dead forum in general. Don't see a link to talk to someone in the company, either. Gawd. If you want to go into business, you'll have to be a little more resourceful than that. Why would you look for a forum. Ask the company directly. http://www.fender.com/resources/contact_information.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Norcal_GIT_r Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 First off if you'll need a business license and a resellers license.Probably a few references from other manufacturers that you've carried in your shop. Also if theres already a Fender dealer within a certain distance from your shop, you are probably out of luck. Squires may be a little different, but Fender is pretty particular in setting up dealers.Now if you don't have a shop, there's no way Fender will sell to you. You should contact a rep through Fender customer service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members almightycrunch Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 I think you have to stock somewhere around 20-25 guitars to be a dealer of Fenders, a friend of mine owns a music store, I think thats what he said, so if you put an average of 800.00 on each guitar, thats 20,000 worth of guitars as a bare minimum inventory. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members leakyfaucet Posted July 18, 2007 Author Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 Thanks guys! And CGDEF, I never said I was going into business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members leftyjazzbass Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 Gawd. If you want to go into business, you'll have to be a little more resourceful than that. Why would you look for a forum. Ask the company directly. http://www.fender.com/resources/contact_information.php Wow, just wow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 Wow, just wow. What? How hard is it to call Fender and get the right answer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Prages Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 What? How hard is it to call Fender and get the right answer? I agree. If it's just a curiosity thing, then yeah, you could just ask us here on the forum and we'll make up an answer to ease your mind. If you want an accurate answer and are relying on it for your (or your friend's) business, you're going to have to establish a contact with Fender at some point. Might as well start now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ashtray Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 Oh - also note that with some manufacturers you need to stock and have a history of selling their lower line (re: Squier, Epiphone, etc) and accessories before they will even allow you to sell their higher end stuff (re: USA, etc) - so if your friend is thinking of opening a small shop, don't expect him to be able to stock 20 nice Fenders that people would want - but rather 40 "less than desirable" fenders and Squiers - purchased at a price that is probably only slightly cheaper than you can get from GC when they have a sale - so the choice would then be to sell them for minimal profit - not enough to cover costs of running the shop, or price them higher than people are willing to pay. Also - for some manufacturers they have geographic zones in which they only will put one store - so that the stores aren't competing with one another - SO if there' a shop around within say 20 miles that sells new Fenders, they might not want to supply you with Fender guitars to compete. These are just possibilities - not exact rules or anything! Just talk to a rep for all the details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cincy_cosmo Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 Believe me...I know the answer to this one as I'm almost a year into starting my music business up. Fender definatly seems to want you to sell their accessories FIRST before they talk to you about selling their guitars. There are two manufacturers that I PLEAD with regularly to carry their line: Fender and Roland. Both want storefronts, and low volume internet or living-room sales ain't gonna cut it. Heck, Behringer won't even talk to me. I've got some good brands but mainly I'm stuck between a rock and hard place. So, it's more than just getting your vendor's license and starting a web site...although that is the starting point. The music industry is trying to foster more store front sales (I don't blame them), but, in this time of not exactly growing in the industry, it's hard to stomach the capital to start up a storefront. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Attila Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 What? How hard is it to call Fender and get the right answer? +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ieso Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 In the late 80s I worked in a shop and Fender made them buy into tier packages: they couldn't just sell guitars but certain quantities of all their products -- amps, strings, straps, guitars, shirts, caps, picks, etc...maybe things have changed since then but I seriously doubt it's vastly different. They bought into a package that seemed to keep about 15-20 guitars on the wall at any given time and about that many amps on the floor as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ieso Posted July 18, 2007 Members Share Posted July 18, 2007 Believe me...I know the answer to this one as I'm almost a year into starting my music business up.Fender definatly seems to want you to sell their accessories FIRST before they talk to you about selling their guitars. There are two manufacturers that I PLEAD with regularly to carry their line: Fender and Roland. Both want storefronts, and low volume internet or living-room sales ain't gonna cut it. Heck, Behringer won't even talk to me. I've got some good brands but mainly I'm stuck between a rock and hard place.So, it's more than just getting your vendor's license and starting a web site...although that is the starting point. The music industry is trying to foster more store front sales (I don't blame them), but, in this time of not exactly growing in the industry, it's hard to stomach the capital to start up a storefront. Ever tried G&L? I wonder if a smaller company would be more receptive? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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