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The latest music industry battle - manufacturers vs retailers?


Phil O'Keefe

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This is a bit off-topic' date=' but a lot of people may not realize that Sweetwater [i']does [/i]have a physical retail store. I always end up buying something there when I go to GearFest ("oh right, I need more thumb picks"). So Chuck does know what's involved in running a store.

 

Oh boy oh boy here's my big chance if Chuck is listening! I've been to Gearfest a couple times and, of course, spent more than I planned too but 2017 was a major pain in the ass because this event is in June and my peeps ride. This time they didn't have some motorcycle parking set aside. As a seasoned pro I lane split my way in but that's rather dangerous for most especially on a two way entrance. You simply can't sit in a long line of cars on a Harley, they're air cooled! What was up with that?!

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Bob' date=' you are so right. I might even say to me, it is even simpler than that, I just want to treat everyone the way I would want to be treated. It is only the decent thing to do. It goes back to me being a Boy Scout as a kid.-:)[/quote']

 

That's how I treat people, and how I do business in both my band and my Band-in-a-Box aftermarket business. I'm a musician, not a businessman, and treating others the way I would want to be treated if I was the customer is the only rule I figure I need to conduct business.

 

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Of course, if you are a masochistic I don't recommend you treating everyone the way you want to be treated ;) (sorry, I couldn't resist that one).

 

 

Insights and incites by Notes

 

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Oh boy oh boy here's my big chance if Chuck is listening! I've been to Gearfest a couple times and, of course, spent more than I planned too but 2017 was a major pain in the ass because this event is in June and my peeps ride. This time they didn't have some motorcycle parking set aside. As a seasoned pro I lane split my way in but that's rather dangerous for most especially on a two way entrance. You simply can't sit in a long line of cars on a Harley, they're air cooled! What was up with that?!

 

I am listening.-:) I appreciate your comments about our Gearfest accommodations. I am sorry. To be honest, it is simply growing very quickly. I am sorry you missed 2018 because we did a major site improvement with much better access to the event. We put new roads in all around our property. We continue to work on it ever year to make things better. If you come in 2019, please be sure to say hi to me. I am usually standing at the front door. Thanks, Chuck

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Actually it was this year, don't know why I wrote 2017! We did manage to get in and had a great time. A riding brother and I both bought new Taylors, my wife bought a mandolin and we picked up a few other assorted goodies. I'd bought an AKAI EWI5000 from Sweetwater for her birthday and she was thrilled to watch Mike Phillips play it there and get a photo. Attending the Nita Strauss presentation made it extra special when we went to see the Alice Cooper Band in October and Yngwie blew our minds and eardrums!

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There are way too many moving pieces to say it’s one thing or another that drives manufacturers to explore selling direct. Speaking as one who spent many years on both as an owner of a small chain of retail stores and as a manufacturer, there are two sides to the discussion.

 

First, not all your customers run a nice clean and efficient business like Sweetwater. If that were the case I’m sure manufacturers wouldn't spend much time exploring their options. But from the manufacturing side I would say the primary drive is repairing the dollar to bull**************** ratio and not greed. Folks that run multi hundred million dollars of sales manufacturing fully realize the additional costs involved in retail distribution.

 

Who could think Carvin is an example of failure? They ran a successful direct business for over 40 years. Big manufacturers like Yamaha or Peavey, who make everything could easily step in. And by controlling all the steps in the process they could actually end up with higher profits even with lower revenue.

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