The Rise and Epic Fail of Guitar Center
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- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2021
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I remember it being such a cool place to to go and visit on my days off in the early to mid 2000’s as a teen. Went into one the other day and it looks like a homeless encampment with 1-2 people on the phone the whole time, no one on the floor… it was wild
Went to local GC to buy some 10 ft mic cables, in pro audio they had huge pegboard wall for cables which was about 75 % empty on every hook! I walked shaking my head.
I’m an ex GC employee. I was there for 5-6 years and left when Bane took over. You are right they immediately removed our negotiating ability and we lost many customers. Our Orlando one is terrible and they all look dirty now etc…great video!
How come my GC Pro guy can give such huge discounts but not the regular employees?
Went to a Guitar Center in the Baltimore area to purchase a Fishman ToneDEQ as Sweetwater was out of stock. Guitar Center had an unboxed floor model. I asked for a discount, and got nothing. So I walked out. What a waste of time. It is too bad, it could be a good shopping experience, but like all venture capital acquisitions, profit is above everything.
Best buy is the same way when it comes to employees that have no clue about what they sell and what promotions thier company is running
I used to be a GC junkie and loved going in the stores. Went to my local one today after a couple years and was shocked. It looked like a drunk irresponsible kids bedroom. Stuff all over the floor, prices missing on all the shelves and in the percussion section a big e-drum set that was collapsed in on itself. Store wasn't really busy and 3 employees at the front just shooting the breeze like there was nothing to do. By the look of the PA and lighting room you can tell this wasn't new and was a at least a few years of straight up neglect.
I disagree that GC should go away. They’re one of the last places where you can actually play a guitar before buying. Even something as common as a Fender Stat can be different from unit to unit, so being able to try it is a huge help. Also their used market is a really good value. Many small music stores have closed due to the pandemic, so that means GC is the last frontier of in person guitar gear buying. I hope they can somehow recover.
I would rather see a return of local Mom and Pop stores.
@@BarryJohns But the mom and Pop company's always have limited inventory and mostly low end gear
@@revelationsoundstudio that’s today, and that didn’t used to be that way before we started saving tax by buying online, maybe, just maybe, we will see that change over the next few years. Who knows…..
They need better training and product understanding. Everything is easy with RUclips and Google. Its more of an issue of caring
My two local GCs have next to no inventory, so really, I am forced to buy online unheard and unplayed. Let's face the fact: ain't nobody can offer selection and choice in person outside of 1 or 2 flagship stores.
I work at GC in Hollywood (the one you apparently went to!). I agree the company is being ran poorly. They should've switched to more of an online retailer years ago. The company has gotten much stingier on discounts. Thankfully I work at one where we are willing to negotiate. Evidently not all deals (no offense but if you're buying a couple packs of strings, no. I will not take off anything for you lmao). But package deals, we do all the time. Again, this is where I work. I know it's different elsewhere. Also, GC will always match the price of another retailer. If they don't, they're lying. It's store policy. I personally feel like they need to close down a lot of stores (not all) and focus heavily on the online business. Sadly that will be difficult because Sweetwater has done an amazing job of that. Pretty sure that's exactly why they haven't closed any stores really. OH! Also, if someone doesn't know their shit they should NOT be working for GC. Absolutely agree there. Because the Hollywood location is a large store we absolutely have to know about the gear in our department. This falls on management. They've got to train their employees (they don't. At all). Thanks for sharing.
As a drummer, i need to hit a cymbal to find the one that sounds good. Can't do that from an online store.
Same here my fellow brother drummer. I've been paying for over 50 years, which includes my time learning how to play as a child back in the 60's. But as I became a teen, I began to understand the differences of better quality cymbals and the cheap worthless pieces of tin. Drum on my brother!
Absolutely! You can set up 10 different brand new 22" Zildjian K Custom Medium Rides all in a row on stands, and when you play them, they will all sound different; each will have it's own unique personality and sonic signature. FACTS! If I ever got into the Zildjian or Sabian factory vaults, I don't think I'd ever leave!
@@hamtramckchronicles Agreed. I used to do that very thing when I was in the market to buy cymbals. I would get as many crash cymbals of the same size, series and brand, and listen to them until I heard what I wanted. It's based on the alloy and tin percentages and other metals that determine the pitches and differences in the sounds.
always appreciate these conversations Barry
Thanks Noki!
I agree with you on some points, but when I first started my “I want to be an artist” path I always felt intimidated to go inside GC because I felt like I knew less then ppl working there. So intimidation plays a role. Just like ppl who lets say would rather workout at home then go to the gym because they feel intimidated. Ppl rather buy online and with how tech is changing, this seems normal. Not just GC is affected by this. Ppl rather listen to you on RUclips for advice, but the reality as well is that a lot of RUclipsrs don’t even know what they talk about sometimes. So now lets blames RUclips for paying you and other companies for paying you, while now everyone makes a decision based off an online review. Ppl should start making decisions based on what they think about something before investing in it.
My brother used to work at GC back before they went super corporate and gave the salesman points and when they gave them some wiggle room on pricing for top customers or big sells. He loved working there and had Alot of loyal customers but when they restructured in mid/late 2000s it went down hill very quickly. He quit and several other top salesman. After that they Lost all or almost all of their loyal customers. Thank God for Sweetwater!😂🤘
Few years ago I needed a dump button for live streaming and they sold me two usb interfaces and TOLD me that those interfaces were dump buttons. Haven’t bought much from them since.
Love the channel
Back in ‘94, next day after attending Eric Clapton “nothing but the blues” - tour concert, I went to Guitar Center and bought a Fender tweed “Blues d Lux” 1/12 and a Fender American Stratocaster 40 anniversary with a Gig Bag for $850. Total. My last (intended) purchase was on 1999, I wanted to buy a Gibson ES 335 VS plain top, they were selling it for $2220.00 but the dude didn’t want to go any lower or even help with the taxes or anything! So I declined, since then I haven’t bought anything from them.
I finally bought my Gibson ES 335 Nat. Figured top (made in Memphis). From AMS on payments.Love it!
Great Video & Channel! 👍🏼
I agree 100% with you. People who works there they have no experience and if you buy anything used they never include the power cable or power supply.
Getting fancy with that second camera angle. I wanna see you incorporate changing your line of sight as they fade into each other. 😂 News anchor style!
Excellent video. I have not gone to Guitar Center in years....Used to be fun there, but no point any more. Now i know why....Great rant....
Phil
NYC Area
I loved guitarcenter in the late 90s early 2000s. It was my favorite place to go. But I went into my local one a few days ago and it was just sad how little they have and what they do have are beat up floor models. That's the main reason I stopped buying from them. Unless you walk in and get a guitar that they just put up, you're buying a used guitar for new price.
I still go in from time to time because I've bought a lot of stuff there over the years but I started going to a local music store and thats become my go to place. Which, if anyone is local to southwestern pa, Micarellis Modern Music is awesome.
GC doesn't feel the same anymore I don't shop there -it feels cold -
Yes.
Hey great observation on guitar center! I can’t believe he didn’t know what a SM7B was!! lol was it the winter park village guitar center you went to? Bc that places is a ghost town!
I heard you say central florida, I live in altamonte springs how are you fellow neighbor lol 😂👍
Good video Barry.. Everything you stated was right on point! Let's us hope and pray that Sweetwater heard the "subliminal" message.
My experience with GC has been quite pleasantly. I always get great deals in store and via phone. I visited all but one store in the ATL area and I’ve spotted which ones have the better inventory and which ones have the better customer service. Among all those stores, I figured who the crappy low work ethic employees are and who the best ones are.
Here in the Atlanta area, we used to have plenty of great music stores around town. We had several on the same road across from each other. One was called American Music, another called Music Mart, Dirt Cheep Music, and a few miles from them was an all drum and percussion store called Atlanta Pro Percussion. That's where I bought all of my drum gear. We also had a mega music store called Mars Music. Then in other locations we had smaller independent stores that didn't carry a lot. I personally have never liked Guitar Centers. We still have several around Atlanta, but by in large, they are too expensive for some items and most of their stock is entry level instruments and hardly no quality level instruments at all. Very little if any. Their cymbals are overpriced. Drums are entry level as I stated. A very skimpy selection of keyboards and occasionally a better quality keyboard for a while. The sorry internet has ruined stores and getting to go to a store to look at what you want to buy. Sears, K Mart, Richway, plus tons of others, have all but closed down, all because of the worthless internet buying. This is what technology and this lazy generation has done to us.
I disagree, it's not being lazy it's just a new day and age. It's nothing like ordering something from Amazon and have it the next morning at your door. I do not miss going to GC and being around a bunch of people who think they're the next hot producer or engineer. Sweetwater by far has been the best experience to buy pro audio gear as they have a 30 day return policy which is way better than going to GC playing with gear for a few hours.
Those companies you mentioned made the same mistakes as GC by not adapting to technology or the times.
It is sad to see what has happened in Atlanta. Bought most of my stuff from APP when it was open. I have not been in the local GC in ages; Sam Ash had all kinds of used stuff but not much else. Last gear I bought was on line.
Sad.
@@unitedsouthenterprisesllc I disagree with you. Adapting to technology is the ruin of small businesses and bigger stores such as the ones I mentioned and more, and the independent stores. Technology is the ruin of days when going to a store to pick out something and buy it right then and take it home was the norm. I am old school and I do buy things occasionally online because I can't find it anywhere else. But that's the freaking technology and lazy bums that want to sit at home, get fat, not work, play worthless video games and be good for nothings in this evil world. I bought two basses online. Luckily they were acceptable when I received them. But I would have preferred buying them in person to try them first. You will never convince me that buying online and staying home and getting fat is better than driving your car to a store and walking in.
@@alantoon5708 The way I heard the story about Atlanta Pro Percussion is, after Ed's wife died, he gave up. he didn't care any longer. he sold online for a while as I heard it. I remember one day, going up there, after not going in years, taking a friend to see this massive drum store, ans when we walked in I was shocked!!!! Only a few drum kits sitting out, cymbals were skimpy, no organization, no enthusiasm, nothing but a dead shell of a great store. I was slightly embarrassed taking my fellow drummer friend up there. he lived in Macon and had never heard of Atlanta Pro.
@@thecoolestdad That was about 4 years ago. Ed had an operation of some type on his neck and Alzeimer's began to affect him after that becoming more severe with time.
I had gone in there to buy some stuff after not playing for a few years.
I understand that he is really in bad shape currently.
Just got thru playing tonight and sad to say all of what I played on was bought from APP.....
It was such a great place. I still have a Premier 2003 snare drum that was purchased from APP in 1982 when it was on Atlanta Road in old downtown Smyrna.
What camera are you using, just curious looks GREAT 👍🏽
It’s in the description of my videos as I get a lot of those questions.
The main camera is a Sony A7III with a Sigma Art DG/DN Lens 24-70mm.
The side angle is a Canon EOS R with a Sigma 18-35 Art Lens
Actually, it’s kind of sad when you walk in to such a big store, and it’s empty. I’ve been to the one on Sunset Strip. That one was pretty cool though…
Also known as Guitar Center Hollywood (The Flagship Location). You should have seen it 5 - 10 years ago.
Imagine working in there...pure hell!
I got my Jackson Soloist at the Guitar Center on Sunset Strip back in the 90s...
The last Tele I bought was from guitar center.I knew the model # and color I wanted.
I asked a salesguy and he didn’t have a clue.
Didn’t see one on the wall,& was walking out when my GF noticed one on a guitar stand hidden behind a counter.It wasn’t even in the computer yet.
Had to wait for that before I got the price. Got it home,restrung it and took it to a gig a few nights later. Noticed it couldn’t stay in tune.
After I got home I started taking it apart and noticed the truss Rod wasn’t even engaged in the threads.Ridiculous! Sweetwater gets all my business now.
Thank you.
My biggest issue is the stores that ban songs, which usually is entry songs for a lot of beginners.
Why? People should test instruments with Songs that provide familiarity, this way they know better what instrument or equipment sounds good for their ears.
It's a service job, not an club and service jobs is about providing a service and assistance, to give the customers a good time, to tell someone who only know 3 songs to not play these 3 songs isn't exactly the brightest fucking idea, when this shit started i knew the quality of workers would only go down from that moment on and has ever since. If managment go down, the quality of workers go down. There is exceptions.
If someone say: Do you know how many times these folk have to hear these songs?....
If you do, i humiliate you in my next comment.
I have played for 15 years and so it's not personal but this have annoyed me for 10 years now, every time i see the sign, i scuffs.
One time a boy was playing Knocking on heavens door, the clerk tried to tell him not to, and i stood up for the boy and sat him straight, i also knew the owner and that the owner had financial problems because of Online stores and Instrument based music have dropped in popularity.
I told him : This boy is a customer, he will potentially be a regular here and it is important that his experience is good, so that he can develope good memories here, he is a paying customer and he is free to buy his products elsewhere and i would too if this is the best treatment you can provide. He looked at me with eyes that could kill and walked away in silence, he have hated me since... The Guitar Shop went bankrupt a few years later, but the boy is older and still play guitar, which is absolutely beautiful.
GC put 3 great music stores in my city out of business when they opened up. Then GC became a ghost town when Sweetwater moved and opened their storefront.
I've been in several guitar centers in different locations recently and it's crazy how there are little to no employees anymore. Now they just lock up guitars and if you want to playb one you must have an associate unlock it . Good luck ! service has plummeted
My local only has what seems to be 2 ppl working. Both seem to be stressed out on weekends with a dozen+ customers. No one is buying anything either.
Wow your in Central Fl. Im in Florida also. North of Daytona. I go to both of those stores a lot, and was hoping the one they opened in the Daytona area would be nice since it's close. My god, they are god awful. They never have anything, and nobody knows nothing.
GC is pretty much like Radio Shack these days.
The good side of Guitar Center is that you can actually put your hands on every product they offer. That's musician-purchasing axiom #1. The problem with GC is that they thought they could apply the same business model to music retail that a food chain like Subway could use to succeed. Subway made franchising overly easy (experience, or not) - relying purely on delivering a mediocre product at a "fair" price. In many retail business models, this plan can surely provide great results. The problem is guitars, amplifiers, sound systems, live- and recording equipment don't follow the same purchasing philosophy as fast-food. The measure of over-head, the necessary amount of on-hand inventory, the need to pay well-informed sales personnel - it all adds up. For what GC would have to invest in inventory alone, vs all overhead costs is a business formula for disaster. I do still, to this day, deal with GC - but only through their Used Equipment link.
I didn't give discounts when I worked at GC. Any discount I gave was money out of my pocket, because I worked on commission. A lower sale price for the customer meant a lower commission for me. Then on top of it, I am expected to give my expertise and knowledge for free to someone who doesn't think the products aren't worth the price tag hanging on them? My knowledge and expertise have value, and that value starts with paying full price for the products.
Recently purchased a new guitar from local GC store. Was treated well. Staff was well versed in product knowledge . Considered purchasing from Sweetwater. But needed to play before choosing final purchase. Can't do that online. That's why we need GC.
The guitar center in my city is like a dried up ghost town...but the small music store was jammin!
I love Sweetwater.. do you think or know if that same terrible fate is starting to happen to SW? .. if so pls do a vid on that one
He has another video all about Sweetwater.
i worked for guitar center in 2001, there was a lot of bs corporatism even back then, but i recently ordered 2 adam audio a7x's and a boss gt1000 from guitar center because they were out of stock at sweetwater, turns out they were back ordered at gc too but they just neglected to indicate that on their website and dont bother to change it after i inform them about it,, so a couple weeks later i get the gt1000 and its clearly an open boxed unit, i had to call to get the difference in price back, and they wouldnt give me any additional discount considering i didnt order an open boxed unit, i then canceled the a7x's and got them from american musical supply , who overnight shipped them for free,,, guitar center sucks
Guitar Center did that to me too with an EHX canyon and they didn't actually have it in stock. Wound up going through sweetwater and not looking back, hopefully they don't go downhill like GC though..
Guitar center has had it's hay day.
For sure.
The people who work at Guitar Center is one rung above Walmart clerk. They really don't know about the gear as stated. Some play some music but many aren't good. That is okay but in the age of the internet where you can buy online, these brick and mortars should emphasize the customer support and the experience of visiting a music store. Most of the workers just stand behind the desk, blocked by the covid plexiglass. Customers just wander about the store without one single person greeting them. A good salesman will jump at the chance to show the gear, play a song on the keyboards, strumb a few chords but no, nobody at the Guitar Center I visited did this. The days that a big box music store just string display of guitars and bring in the customers are over. They can see all the models online. The pros already know what they need. The vast majority of people need the one-on-one customer interaction that isn''t provided by the bigboxstores. Shame. The execs don't know how to run the stores either so they don't know what is wrong with the business.
Last time I bought at Guitar Center was in the 90's. I got a rack unit I was going to use live. The salesman forgot to include the power cord when he raped it up and I paid at the counter. It was a ways away so when I got home I called and I was assured he would send it in the mail. There was plenty of time for that to no need to next day air or anything but gig came and went and I did not get my cord. SO I took the unit back. They summed the guy who sold it. Nothing was said but he knew why. I told them I don't have a cord for this and I am going to get it at Sam Ash now. :Lost a sale.
The last time I was at a GC I was looking at mixers and learned the hard way not to try to look at the back where all the ins and outs are, because I set off some alarm and a couple employees swarmed me and assumed I was trying to steal it (I wasn't). They gave me such a hard time, and even blocked me from the exit briefly until I challenged them. I decided I would never go back in there ever again. I went on to spend thousands elsewhere, and I still would never consider them for anything.
@@levondarratt787 what's the point of going to a store if you can't properly look at the product? I did nothing wrong and I temporarily had my rights violated. You weren't there, man, come on.
We had the coolest music store in Waco and it’s headquarters was in Austin.Heart O Texas Music is where we all cut our teethe in the Waco area.It had been open since the mid-50’s.It was family owned. G.C. came into town and priced them completely out of the market.
Really sad day in the Waco area.All of the musicians knew the owners by name and they knew all of us by name.
Now I dread going to G.C. Can’t find anyone to wait on you and when you do it’s like they’d rather be on their phones than help you.
Really sad.
an excellent summary-exactly. correct -
I can listen to a recording of a piece of audio gear on my own speakers in my own studio. I can watch several reviews online. Apart from buying an instrument with specific feel and action, buying pro audio is easiest online.
I hear you….. I went to the GC in Fort Lauderdale recently and there was nothing there worth buying
Our GC is garbage now in Jax. Use to be nice to go to. Pleasant. Now I’d expect homeless people living in each section of the store.
just came from the guitar center in orlando (orange blossom). What a mess. Its my mandatory stop every other 6 months when I visit Orlando for work, I always get away for visiting the store and trying out some stuff. Today was the worst, ever. Lack of inventory, bad experience (ladders in the middle, opened boxes), no stock, lack of guitars. It wasn't that good, I just walked away, didn't even bother to ask for a cable and plug something. Really disappointed, I will see if I can shift my mandatory visits to Samash or something.
If you like vintage guitars, Jimmy’s in Auburndale is good. Replay guitars in Tampa is great for high end.
It's just so, so, so sad... I miss the Sam Ashes and Guitar Centers of yesteryear.
Store manager at Lowes has more power to negotiate than a GC manager. No lie.
If you work at a GC longer then 45 days, you become a department head. If you’re there longer than 6 months, you an assistant manager. If you’re still there after a year, you’re the store manager. This is because they have pike 90% turnover
Last November I bought a Les Paul Custom, strings,cables and a strap. When I paid for everything, I asked the sales person to go get the guitar case. He said it doesn't come with a case. I told him to get one and I would pay for it. They had no Les Paul case in the store. I had to walk to the car with a nice guitar , no case in November. I never went back and never will.
I went to Guitar Center and it was dead. I loved it!!!! I bought my Alesis V61 because I was able to feel the action. I have it now. It was easy and I didn't have to wait for Fedex or UPS to get it to me. I am working on making a computer system to do keys on. I tried out a few different ones that RUclips reviews said had great actions . If there wasn't a guitar center there I might have taken the plunge on the wrong thing.
My inlaws live in Danville KY I am in Cali and love my yearly visits there every summer
I lived in Pacific Beach in San Diego for about seven years in the 90s.
U you sure right but I think they have improved in many areas. I just bought a Taylor 324ce and I got 4 years no interest. So I mean a guitar is a guitar regardless where you buy it it’s the same guitar. But I do agree sweet water and Alamo those places are top notch.
I love guitar center. Much better selection than I can find anywhere else! I do my own research so always measure what I hear from any sales person - guitars, bikes, electronics, etc., so not hanging on their advice.
Jacksonville has 2 also, they never have what you want in stock,almost forced to buy off the wall.
How could I buy a keyboard if I can't listen to it and feel the keys out first ? So I go to GC, and half the pianos on display are turned off. Only 2 big boy keys were on display, one running through the cheapest crummyest monitors in the store, with no sus petal. The other hanging off the wall on a tilt. State of the art key beds have much to do with gravity, they won't function correctly if you have them tilted. I called the sales kid over ( no details) and I was sadly disappointed.
I wonder who on earth is running the keyboard Department. For the first time ever I walked out of the store with no smile on my face and feeling sad. I remember a time when I would visit the store just to enjoy myself, and on the way buy a piece of sheet music or what ever. I don't know what to say but it's really sad what's going on, really sad.
I’m all eBay and sweet water now. I just go when I need a midi wire or quarter inch cable
I like going into the store and trying different guitars, and comparing one against the other. There is no place to do that any more.
I worked at a GC in about the yr 2000, what a diff place it was then, and it was in the Bay Area, in Cali. always packed, and we had the ability to negotiate. I have friends at a few of em now and they hate it and prob wont be there much longer.. Theyre apparently trying to erase the commission and lower the hourly wage and they have to sell like 3x more what they have been or that employee is gone, terminated. something like that. I was in the local GC here in Hagerstown, MD, and they have awesome people there, but you can tell theyre being treated like the Gamestop employees now. Dude kept trying to talk me into getting some insurance plan on a guitar 4x12 cab,lol. A 1 yr for almost $40. I said, " I have 45 days to test it and its basically brand new, right?" they said yea "but its better to have insurance cuz it will cover in case the thing stops working or.." he had like 10 reasons, all stupid to get insurance on a freakin speaker cab, and it was just for if it became faulty by its own fault, so to speak. didnt cover dropping it down a flight of stairs etc,lol. So I told em its a speaker cab, I know it works, I have a month and a half to make sure it works, but its new and why would I need to replace a new cab that is just gonna sit in 1 spot in my basement and not move?? He just kept trying to talk me into it, its like Gamestop with the selling insurance on a freaking $7 etc used game, lmfao. INSURANCE ON A USED VIDEO GAME. You have like a month there to test it, so why would you pay to have insurance like its going to all the sudden on its own stop working one day after the 30 days?? And they just try to sell everything they can to you thats useless, thats where all their profits come in. Terrible, Capitalism is bad in some cases unfortunately. Some cases..
Agreed
Personally, I’ve never know GC to “negotiate” prices. I think the issue is that it’s a low paying job for low skill workers. And you have significantly better options online. There’s 3 GC locations in the east valley in Arizona and they’re all usually quite busy. Perhaps it’s MOSTLY people who are bored and just looking for something to do. But people still shop at GC. I personally don’t think they’ll be around much longer.
I would agree 100% ... Years ago I bought a jeff beck sig strat and its was awesome they gave me a good deal and it went smooth. Couple days ago I went and they had an YVM strat and they wanted 1700 for it . I told em i would give em 1500 for it and its been on the wall for month easy and they said no. O well. I walked. All kids that have no clue about products.
What you all need is a GC Pro rep - especially my GC Pro rep. You will never, ever get better prices anywhere than what he can get. Write an email to your GC Pro rep (find one if you don't have one), ask them for a quote, and you'll be amazed at how much better the prices are.
You are ONLY going to get that in a major market like LA, NY, heck they are actually terrible in Chicago.
The majority of GC’s are in second tier markets.
ThE onE in my city has profiled so may people and are so unfriendly they literally drove everyone away. They have no knowledge of what they sell and are so weird and hostile when u go in there. They have shifty eyes and their vibe is really negative. You can sense that they hate you while they smile. Its creepy. I actually stopped going to gc in my town because of it.
They are all about a monopoly. Once they have done away with the competition ( mom & pop stores ) you will pay what ever they want! They have over 280 stores & they own Musicans Friend, & Mitchell guitars. Its business, I have worked for a music store so I know dealer cost on Fender, Gibson, Martin, etc. When I go into a Guitar Center they always quote me MSRP and when I make them a offer they don't want to deal with me at all! Seriously in 2011 I wanted to buy 1 black & 1 white Gibson Melody Maker Flying V so I went to G.C. and they quoted me $539.00 for one. I told them they were on ebay for $399 and they said they did not honor ebays prices and these guitars were made for G.C. only so I went to another Gibson dealer ( Sound Vibrations ) and they did not know about these guitars believe it or not they said the Gibson rep did not tell them about these guitars ( man he was pissed ) I asked for one and they said they would sell me a black one for $399 but the white ones were already sold out so I took the receipt I had for the black one and went back to G.C. and told the manager if he did not get me a white one for $399 from another store I would go over his head and go through another G.C. and get one for the price that I wanted to pay, and two days later I had the guitar. lol Sound Vibrations is not a Gibson dealer any more. Can you blame them for dropping Gibson? A good employee is worth his wait in gold and a bad one will cost you money. I have not bought a new Gibson since... and I wont even buy strings, picks or a T shirt from G.C.
Every store is different. I agree that people who don’t have the information should not be telling people what to buy. The information provided should be from a expert that is successful business one on one. People not liking a business because they will not negotiate the price is a little ridiculous. I have ordered stuff from amazing and it was defective. All the trouble you have to go through to return is easier with a store front. I recently bought a interface and it’s easier to demo it before buying. I worked at a music store in Atlanta years ago. The music store could not get Gibson guitars. Gibson would not sale guitars to them because of negotiations. The company was selling guitars below priced value. They called it devaluing they’re product. Would you change your opinion if guitar center had individual’s well informed like you?
Yay, a video that isn't about Avid! The alternate camera angle is a little off putting as your talking to the listener but not looking at them. But yah, GC always empty and that's empty in the Chicago market. Sounds like at least they may have some decent guitars, on the keyboard side it hasn't been worth walking into a guitar center in years except to see if someone was dumb enough to trade in a good keyboard but even their prices on the used stuff is terrible. Musician's Friend was decent years ago but isn't worth bothering with today.
Can I get any love😂
Actually, you still can save on sales tax by buying online. When you buy online you pay the state sales tax rate. Individual counties and municipalities have even higher rates. For example, in New Mexico the state sales tax rate is 5.125%. In Farmington NM (San Juan County) the rate is 8.5% and in some counties it can be as high as 9.0625%! I do now buy most of my music related gear and software from Sweetwater. They have really good customer support.
That’s good to know, although I don’t think it’s as flexible in most states. There are still a few that don’t charge sales tax on internet purchases.
Loved the Mitt Romney dig.....
Now everybody online charges sales tax, even eBay, so the playing field is level for local stores. Online retailers still have better financing and free shipping tho.
The reason no one in a GC has any product knowledge is because they do not pay a living wage. You can earn more at a convenience store than at GC.
Looks like Mitt gave you a down vote.
😁
As of me, I don't want any business out of business, even if they don't have the best service.
There is little incentive for a low paid employee who has very little chance for advancement to educate themselves about the product line. By design, the employee’s only function is to process sales. Retail outlets of all types operate this way. Sad, but a sign of the times.
They’re basically a place you can stop by and grab a set of strings on the way to a gig-That’s IT!
I go to the in OBT. And that store sucks. No one would help you. And when asked for they didn't even know what i was looking for. I ask the pro audio guy for a ADAT cable and a SPDIF cable and they didnt even know what those were.
I worked at GC back in the mid-80's in SoCal. It was always noisy. Horrible management - they basically ran the place like a used car dealership.
I did make great friends, met a lot of great local heavy metal bands, but basically refused to buy anything from there. I would go to Sam Ash, and later internet and Sweetwater or Vintage King.
I will go to a GC to try out a guitar and then turn around and buy it on Reverb or somewhere else. I stock up on strings, picks and other disposables. No reason to ever go in there.
it is quite sad... i worked pro audio in Manchester CT from opening i got my b level cert... tough damn test that was/// we used to KNOW everything about what we/I were selling... personally, i never sold the high "GP' items i was told to (Gross Profit), i only sold what i would stand behind... top sales for months... then it got even stranger... the sunday MORNING SALES meetings... in a goddamn tie!... now, it is worse than the fall of Daddy's junky music, ... which i also worked at.
My favorite is Sweetwater, I have been a customer of theirs since 2008 and always have a great transaction.
A few pieces of stale candy that gets thrown into boxes and a slick tongue sales person, does not make items that are usually WAY HIGHER retail priced acceptable. Management told me that their "service" including higher prices are not for everyone. Also a lot of people do not know, that the sales staff gets paid commission on what they up-sell in packages as well. Really shop around, you'll find way lower prices.
Here in Virginia is the same. They should shut down. By the way I agree with everything you said.
Another company to avoid is Musicians Friend. Not the company it used to be. Just a drop shipping catalog as far as I can see. Crap customer service, unknowledgeable, perfectly fine with cheating their customers.
07 08 06 hell yea
If these big dead dirty dumb zombie stores would disappear, it would clear the way for smaller, better stores to resurface. It was sad to watch the little stores that used to be everywhere get smothered by this big crappy monster, who today can’t even bother to keep the guitars clean. Also, most of them just stock mid to low end products anyway, so the argument of “I need to test it before I buy it“ doesn’t really apply to most people.
The main thing you have to remember, is Guitar Center (an subsidiary company Musician's Friend) are RETAIL companies, that is all. It's nothing to do with the current investment company.. It's all to do with management and the employees of the each respective company. Understand again, that this is a retail company that does not care about customer service only sales of what they are selling.
Sorry, do some research. They have been bought out two separate times by two different investment companies.
#99 on the likes and a new sub
I think their only real income stream is the raw consumer. My girlfriend (who has no clue) gifted me a bass from GC. She went in on a whim and was led by the salesman to a bass WAY over my skill set - 2019 Fender Jazz Ultra - it’s a great instrument, she got it for $1499 +tax - but I’m a guitar player that wanted a bass to track with Logic. A nice $500 Yamaha was what I hinted around for - not a nice American Fender Jazz. I’m glad she got it but WAY above my skill set. It’s because she had no clue - any customer that had knowledge wouldn’t have bought it. You can’t use luck as a business model.
Don't sweat it, you are lucky to have such an amazing girl. That Fender's sound will take you into musical directions you might not otherwise consider.
You ask why the people who work in pro audio do not walk around and familiarize themselves with the products? Just go in and talk with them. They do not have a clue. If asked a question about something, they will give you any answer that they want, because they have no idea.
I agree with some of what you are saying but you're coming from a consumer standpoint only. The first thing is a business has to make money and I know from a consumer end of it that can be a dirty word. Music instruments do not have tons of markup so when you say go on reverb and contact the store and they will give you 20% off. If a store gives the customer a 20% discount and pays for free shipping and the 8% that Reverb charges, the seller actually pays to sell that item and makes nothing. A manufacturer puts a MAP policy in place to protect the value of a product. And also keep the store from discounting down to nothing and making very little profit and dictating what other stores can sell that item for. It's like years ago you could not buy a Harley below retail and as a consumer when you sold that bike you were able to get a great value on it. Once discounting started to happen the value when down. It's just like taking a trade, the customer comes in and says well they are selling for this. That's the asking price and a business needs to make some profit. That's not the trade value. As far as tax goes almost all states are collecting tax now. GC took the ability to discount away from the employees because they were not making any money. The downfalls come from growing too fast, not training your employees, and going public. Once that happens it's all about spreadsheets and the bottom line.
The musical instrument industry did it to themselves. They slept with GC and effectively made traditional music stores extinct. Every rep will tell you the same thing. GC has pay as sold terms and has consistently not done so. The manufactures have no place left to sell as a consequence and are left in quite a lurch. Is it possible that we don't even need another new guitar made...
people have lost the motivation to play a musical instrument, its just too hard. Its easier for the young kids to play video games and be entertained that way. After paying for rent, electricity,school loan and gas for the V-8, not much money is left to buy a guitar. Only the rich people can afford to shop for a luxury item like a guitar.
Guitar Center is still around, I'm not a fan but they are still going.
Guitar Center is more interested in selling Expensive Pro Coverage!
Than musical equipment.
Place is a joke. Agree on all points. Worthless husk of its former self, even though it ALWAYS paled in comparison to smaller music shops.
Considering there's NOTHING ELSE I root for them to continue. As a working musician it's always comforting to know I a piece of gear on short notice instead of waiting a week for shipping. No matter how many hack attempts of the Sweet Child of Mine intro I have to endure it's still convenient and makes me feel like there's still some hope for guitar driven music.
I agree 110%. They are HORRIBLE. Not knowledgeable, Professional. Crazy staff that is worthless. The only time I go is we I see my Manager friend that hooks me up most every time w/ 20% OFF the worse would be a 15%. I loved being from SWEETWATER and not paying TAX. Now that’s changed. 🤔