Members One Bad Monkey Posted September 4, 2007 Members Posted September 4, 2007 ...when you deal with stuff like this. I was in the market for new URB strings, after finding out that the D string was starting to unravel at the bridge. Can't blame it really, I've used those strings heavily for over 12 years. So, I price out some replacements, figuring that the D'Addario Heliocore Orchestral strings were good to me, so why switch it? Bob Gollihur, Lemur Music and Upton Bass have them listed at $95 + shipping. There is one place in town that deals with the orchestral and band instrument market, and they have a nice selection (I used to work there too, and still get the employee discount). I check the pricing, and they have them for $150. Now, I'm not asking for them to completely come down to the $95. If anything, I'd pay up to $115-120 for them, based on 1. immediate gratification (I can get them NOW) and 2. I'm supporting a local business. Upon talking with the sales rep (and consequently, the manager), they won't budge on the strings. Even after telling them flat out that I'll buy them online because there is such a price difference, they don't do anything. So, I wish them a good afternoon and order my strings with Bob (he's had stellar reviews here, I figure I'll toss him some business too). Sure, GC may be hurting some of the Mom and Pop stores. But with places that are trying to gouge you and pay the rent with each set of strings, it's not entirely GC's fault.
Members Brother Mango Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 ...when you deal with stuff like this. I was in the market for new URB strings, after finding out that the D string was starting to unravel at the bridge. Can't blame it really, I've used those strings heavily for over 12 years. So, I price out some replacements, figuring that the D'Addario Heliocore Orchestral strings were good to me, so why switch it? Bob Gollihur, Lemur Music and Upton Bass have them listed at $95 + shipping. There is one place in town that deals with the orchestral and band instrument market, and they have a nice selection (I used to work there too, and still get the employee discount). I check the pricing, and they have them for $150. Now, I'm not asking for them to completely come down to the $95. If anything, I'd pay up to $115-120 for them, based on 1. immediate gratification (I can get them NOW) and 2. I'm supporting a local business. Upon talking with the sales rep (and consequently, the manager), they won't budge on the strings. Even after telling them flat out that I'll buy them online because there is such a price difference, they don't do anything. So, I wish them a good afternoon and order my strings with Bob (he's had stellar reviews here, I figure I'll toss him some business too). Sure, GC may be hurting some of the Mom and Pop stores. But with places that are trying to gouge you and pay the rent with each set of strings, it's not entirely GC's fault. I'm inclined to agree with you, but I wonder if it's truly gouging. Is the small store paying what GC pays? In the cigar market, there are some obscene prices, and it seems like gouging until you find out that the store or bar put someone in a taxi to go buy the cigars retail at a real cigar shop. Any way ... I'd like to spend money with a neighborhood electronics store, but they have no return policy. Actually, the product has to be defective, then I have to put up a fight, then they'll offer a replacement--no refund or store credit. Still, I know that they don't have the infrastructure to support a no-hassle refund policy.
Moderators Kindness Posted September 5, 2007 Moderators Posted September 5, 2007 I'd like to spend money with a neighborhood electronics store, but they have no return policy. Who is that?
Members Mudbass Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 Sure, GC may be hurting some of the Mom and Pop stores. But with places that are trying to gouge you and pay the rent with each set of strings, it's not entirely GC's fault. I think the GC is the reason Mom and Pop stores have to gouge you to pay the rent.
Members Funkee1 Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 You're wrong. The cheap bastards always trying to get a deal are forcing the Mom and Pop stores out of business. If people weren't constantly trying to get stuff cheaper, there's be no market for Wal- Mart, Target, or even GC, and there'd be no need to make guitars in Mexico or China or Singapore. So you all gotta decide: Do you want expensive gear, made in the USA, that you can buy from the Mom and Pop store, or do you want competitive to low prices. Me? I don't care about all that stuff, and just want the right tool for the job. I don't care who I buy it from either.
Members takeout Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 Mom and Pop need to ditch the lease and open up an Internet business like every other smart person of the last ten years.
Moderators Kindness Posted September 5, 2007 Moderators Posted September 5, 2007 Mom and Pop need to ditch the lease and open up an Internet business like every other smart person of the last ten years. They need both. Those are the best shops by far.
Members mmb Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 They need both. Those are the best shops by far. Elderly Music comes to mind. Great store, lousy looking, but great website.
Members lyricpoet Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 Whose Bob? He work at GC? Another cog in the wheel...
Members SpaceGhost Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 Meh, the prices at my local shop are pretty decent but they won't budge. Then again, their bass selection beats the {censored} out of GC. NJ Guitar & Bass Center
Members Crescent Seven Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 I worked at the best shop in Denver for a couple of months. The owner discounted himself right out of business, unfortunately. His biggest issue wasn't strings and accessories, it was his vendors, like Accugroove, Epifani, and Rivera, selling their products to Musician's Friend (ie GC) at a bulk rate, or vendors like Bergantino requiring him to stock an outrageous amount of product to be a dealer, or U.S. Music screwing him on Eden repairs and Parker shipments. The last 2 months the store was open were record months for sales. The profit involved in those sales was not enough to keep the brick and mortar shop in business. C7
Members Adrenochrome Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 Mom and Pop need to ditch the lease and open up an Internet business like every other smart person of the last ten years. The small shops in the UK that sell online are thriving - others not so.
Members Fran da Man Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 I've used those strings heavily for over 12 years. I check the pricing, and they have them for $150. And you're complaining? :freak:
Members One Bad Monkey Posted September 5, 2007 Author Members Posted September 5, 2007 And you're complaining? :freak: Given the fact that one place was $55 less on the strings than the other, yes I am. The longevity was only a testament to the strings themselves. Like I said before (and Kindness caught it), I wasn't asking them to go down to $95 (which I think is only $5 above cost, according to an old teacher of mine who sells those strings too). I was asking them to split the difference. I would've gladly paid $120 or so for the strings from a Mom and Pop store, which I didn't think was unreasonable, given the store in general (it's got five locations across the state, and is THE place for band and orchestra instruments, rental or sales. They also have a selection of guitars, basses, etc..). I was willing to work with them, but at the same time, they needed to work with me a little.
Members Perfessor Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 I bought Red Ball strings for my upright at Sam Ash. They were $110 and in stock. The mom and pop store right down the street they said they'd order a set for me and they would be $179. I told them about the other deal and they just stared at me. I think they survive on music lessons or something at small stores. Really things just change and bigger, better stores are where people go. More people drive Toyotas than Fords. Things change.
Members flemtone Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 You'll never go wrong when dealing with Bob Gollihur - one of the best in the business. He's a wealth of information about all things Upright, and is no slouch on the electric. His site is the Holy Grail of bass information, and he has incredible gear for even more incredible prices. You could spend a week just going thru his 'links' page, and every one is worthwhile. He's also one of the nicest guys on the planet. For those of you not 'in the know', check his site: http://www.urbbob.com
Members Roguetitan Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 the independant music stores I deal with are compeditive with GC and MF and sell online, my favorite is I75music.com AKA the Sound Post by us local yolkels.
Members hasbeen Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 just my two cents: Splitting the difference puts the retailer at about 15 points gross profit margin. If a dealer can only make that, he's better off selling the business and putting the money in the stock market. A big challenge going forward is going to be the fact that strings, sticks, drum heads, reeds etc. represent what should be/used to be the profit center for a store. This is the product that turns and sells for an increased gross profit versus higher ticket items (guitars, basses, saxophones etc.) that sit on the wall for extended periods and sell for less GP points. These commodity, higher turning items are those that people are more inclined to buy on-line. So the local retailer is hit right in the profit center. It's a challenge for all of us because now when we want to go to a brick and mortar to try out an instrument in person, they're out of business. When I buy anything from any local retailer, I not only look at the product I'm buying but also at the service AND the resource they're providing.
Members chunky-b Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 Went to one of our local stores yesterday during lunch. They are really good about matching GC / MF prices. But by looking at the tags, they are hoping for unknowing patrons to come through and pay the markups. The guitard friend of mine that was with me noticed that none of the instruments we played around on were even remotely setup or even in tune. He played the John Mayer Strat and it was way out of tune, bridge real high, and just hard to even noodle on. I picked up a few basses and none were setup or had any adjustments made. Just had strings thrown on them. The guitard told me that they don't even have a setup guy anymore. He dropped of a guitar awhile back and they said their setup guy "stops by every week or so". How can they expect to compete like that?
Members T. Alan Smith Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 They need both. Those are the best shops by far. Yup. My buddy Jake at humbuckermusic.com takes excellent care of me and everyone I send to him.
Members L-1329 Posted September 5, 2007 Members Posted September 5, 2007 You're wrong. The cheap bastards always trying to get a deal are forcing the Mom and Pop stores out of business. If people weren't constantly trying to get stuff cheaper, there's be no market for Wal- Mart, Target, or even GC, and there'd be no need to make guitars in Mexico or China or Singapore.So you all gotta decide: Do you want expensive gear, made in the USA, that you can buy from the Mom and Pop store, or do you want competitive to low prices. These two posts explain the truth about why they go under to the big chains. The sad thing is that the big chains are 99.9% low end gear only, and that it's now nearly impossible to find any high end bass gear in person to try out. It really has become a by first then decide, net/mail order system for all but the most entry level gear.
Members BB5000 Posted September 6, 2007 Members Posted September 6, 2007 Ya pays yer money and ya make yer choice. Guitar Center, just like WalMart, Circuit City, Home Depot are MASS marketers, made possible by world logistics, favorable/unfavorable labor/exchange rates, the general cluelessness of most of their customers, all overlaid and made possible by the Global Economy. If it suits you, go for it. But you gotta remember that the cheapest prices are always made possible by the lowest wages, whether in China or Indonesia, or the guys in the trenches at your local big box retailer. It's no surprise that while WalMart is the largest corporation on Planet Earth, fully half or better of their employees can't afford the pay cut they'd have to take for the deductions for benefits.In fact, 'Always Low Prices' has WallyMart in the sights of several state legislatures that feel they are shouldering an unfair burden of supplying State health insurance to make up the shortfall of these employees' lack of benefits. I really don't want to be a part of this. Plus sometimes, they're so big, they're just stupid. Here at the GC in Nashville, there are many five string basses for sale. Go up to the String Counter, they sell NO five string sets. Go figure. My local 'Mom and Pop' has anything I could think of, I know everybody there, I get the best service from friends, and the price difference is negligible. Takes all kinds to make a world, but I still prefer a little knowledge and service to saving $5.
Members justinbass Posted September 6, 2007 Members Posted September 6, 2007 Meh, the prices at my local shop are pretty decent but they won't budge. Then again, their bass selection beats the {censored} out of GC.NJ Guitar & Bass Center I like that store. I bought my Ibanez Musician there. I like that they don't budge on prices. What you see is what you get. His prices aren't crazy, and the selection there is awesome. It is a shame they never update their website. They'd do a lot more business if they did.
Members Darkstorm Posted September 6, 2007 Members Posted September 6, 2007 Agrees its better to order from places onoline that have better prices and good service rather then paying higher prices to local store. If walk in store cant compete in prices and service, they just put themself out of bussiness.
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