Music123 Bankrupt!

[hippietim]

You know what I was reffering to Tim. We're talking about music store chains.
I realize the scope of my comment was quite large. I didn't mean it to be a blanket statement per-se.

I'm talking about the independant music shops, and smaller family run places. I'm still very bitter towards the large music store chains after working for them for a while. I wasn't fired from any of them, but I left them disgusted by their selling practices.

It burns my ass to see them sucking up everything involved in the business they can.

Sorry but I don't distinguish between GC and Circuit City or Target. Same shit, different market.

I've said this before but good mom and pop shops are a rare find. My experiences with them vs. GC is not favorable. There are exceptions of course but by and large I'd say they're no better/worse than GC. Places like Matt's Music are very good to deal with. But for every Matt's Music there are a dozen shops run by asshats with crappy prices.

At the same time, the GC in Raleigh treats me great. Several of the guys there are very knowledgeable and helpful. In fact, one of their guitar sales dudes just left my house about an hour ago - he came over to hang out and jam and check out pedals. He's an interesting dude with a lot of skills - he can play, he builds pedals, he does quality repair work, and in about a month he will be leaving GC to pursue an opportunity with a well known guitar builder here in Raleigh. Several guys in drums and pro audio have been extremely helpful to me. They treat people with respect and don't mind when my son sits down to play drums (he's a beginner so you guys know how that is).

Does GC have some punks working there that have no clue? Absolutely. Do most mom and pop shops as well? Absolutely.

If you want to go on a big store crusade, by all means - do it. I refuse to shop at Walmart for a number of reasons so I fully understand your sentiment (although I did have to buy Kissology there since the Walmart edition had the Largo '77 show bonus disc and I was at that show).

[charvelguy]

Sweetwater is a little on the high side.. but I have dealt with them in the past and had no problems.

Guitar Center bought out Mars inventory when they went under so this is no different.

Last time I was at GC , a manager I spoke with for awhile made a very tempting offer for a new Line 6 UX2.. 169 out the door. I was very suprised he went that low but it was a labor day sale. I also had to pass on it even tho I was tempted. I was being asked quite often "don't you find it hard to come in here and not buy anything?" ..very, but I've often hung out at the local music store/guitar shop even when I was a kid... used to annoy the sales people to no end.

[Zerberus]

WHY does GC put M&P's out of business? .....

There are really simple answers to this one.

1. People buy shit cheap at GC and expect the M+Ps to proovide the warranty service. Which unfortunately they´re bound to provide due to their dealership contracts (unless this has changes in the last 10 years)
2. People take hours playtesting at M+Ps, only to buy at GC becasue they´re 3$ cheaper.
3. GC/MF have a huge marketing budget, this gives them a major edge. I actually spoke to a buddy who lives in Boston, Massachusetts a few days ago, and he didn´t even know that there were other music stores IN Boston, much less that Matt´s Music sells USA and Custom Jacksons for astounding prices with great service just a stone´s throw away.

Bottom line is that all of this = The M+P gets the hassle and costs, but GC generally gets the sale.

Seriously, when I hear people saying about how they support mom and pop stores above everything, but then rave about their new mexico fender that they got at GC, I would like to execute them myself.

And this doesn´t even touch on GC being THE Wal-Mart of the Guitar industry.... If you boycot Wal-Mart but shop at GC, you should do us all a favor and shoot yourself. The Gene pool is diluted with enough ignorance as it is....

[Chad]

Thanks for the info, but...

1. I've generally got better prices from M&Ps, so that doesn't really hold up (at least for me).
2. Seems, at least from the M&Ps I've been to, they are more helpful and keep an eye on folks better....and don't let any schmoe pick up a $5,000 guitar and wail away. GC is the place where people really play away with gear that is totally out of their budget.
3. You have to advertise to survive. I can see how it would be next to impossible to match GC's advertising level, but the stores that die....do they even advertise much at all?

[Argos]

Everyone seems to be talking about how GC is cheaper than local stores. Every time I've been in GC, their prices are insane--really outrageous. Am I just going to the wrong store? I don't know how they do business.

[Bert]

I hate going to the M&P's and having to haggle over a f'ing patch cable just to avoid paying full list. For that reason I buy most of my cheapo stuff from the GC/Musician Friends/Music 123's of the world where stuff is discounted off the bat. For more expensive stuff I do try to deal with the better of the smaller dealers.

[quiksilver]

It seems obvious from this thread that the M&P vs. Big Store experience varies radically. Personally, I've bought a ton of gear from both over the years (including MF and Music123, both of which gave me excellent service), and have, frankly, had better buying experiences with the big guns. I sympathize with the plight of the M&Ps, and if we had a local place like Matt's, I'd buy there all the time, but we don't. The stores in my town charge more, carry a very limited selection and most disturbingly, have no return policy, so I appreciate the opportunity to research and buy online.