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Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 1:29 pm
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I have had mixed experiences with GC much like any other store of any kind that I have ever shopped at. It's just the nature of the shopping beast. No biggie.
It would not surprise me if they do close down some stores. They would probably be stores that are not doing as much business as others.

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Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 1:46 pm
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Good one JC :)

I have not had too many dealings with GC but the few times I've been to the one in Charlotte the sales people were knowledgable and helpful when I enquired about a specific item. Competition is what keeps prices down for consumers. Anytime a competitor leaves the market for what ever reason it gives the ones that are left more wiggle room in their pricing.
Competition is Good for musicians.

I run a sub contracting construction business so I know both ends of it...I also work occasionally at a Mom and Pop Music store so I understand their frustration when a big box chain cuts in on their business. PS: their regular prices still beat GC on a lot of things including Fender so don't pass the little guy up just because he doesn't have as big a selection. Your new baby may be there waiting for you.

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Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 1:57 pm
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jeffo46 wrote:
If this is true, then hopefully the ones over by where I live will shut down and give the Mom and Pop stores a chance to survive. I for one, would not lose any sleep if any of the GC stores were to shut down.


I once asked the proprietor of one such 'mom and pop' why he did not carry Fender guitars. I was told that they did not do enough volume and Fender would not sell to them . Something to consider given your wishes.

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Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 3:51 pm
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bowlfreshener wrote:
I don't care cause I don't have any GCs within an hour of where I live, and even if I did, I probably wouldn't care too much because you can get most of what any store has to offer on this thing called the internet... :wink:


+1, although the same people who own GC also own Musicians Friend and a few other internet MI outlets.

I personally don't have any loyalty or dislike towards GC, one way or the other. I'm not hung up on GC as my personal musical gear shrine--if I had one, it would be Denmark Street in London (I was stationed in southern England for 5 years with the US Air Force), and trust me, if I went back to the UK soon, it wouldn't be to just shop for gear! But currently, the economic climate is such that, if they did mention that GC was closing some stores for good, I wouldn't be surprised.

Like I said about MARS Music, you would've thought they were doing good until they went bankrupt in 2002--crowded stores, full page ads in Vintage Guitar Magazine, and relatilvely new stores in a lot of large cities. Sometimes things don't work out the way loyal customers or the company want them to.

I live about 60 miles from a GC, I haven't ever been there and probably wouldn't unless I was literally passing by--because making a special trip to spend an hour browsing in a music store just doesn't turn me on like it used to. It's not that I wouldn't want to if I had nothing else to do, but I do have other things to do. I guess I'm just getting old.


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Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 5:39 pm
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Joined: Thu Jul 05, 2007 3:04 pm
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Location: South Florida
I have a GC right here in town and while it may not be the greatest, it is convenient. There are many times my GAS becomes too much for me or I just need strings, a cable or other accys and it's just 2 miles down the road.

We have a great independent store just west of Ft. Lauderdale where all of the pros and visiting concert acts go when they need something, but it's miles away from me. That's where I saw the Fender Esprit hanging on the wall for $4K. <sigh> I was a few bucks short. :roll:


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 6:09 pm
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Joined: Tue Jan 01, 2008 1:51 pm
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Location: Bucks County, Pennsylvania, USA
Hello Liveatsix,

Within a 30 minute drive of my home
3 guitar centers, 3 sam ash. About every
Sunday I visit one, salesfolk let me do my thing
and are respectful, I'm glad I can be exposed to so
many instruments and players. I hope they do not close.

Cheers.


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Post subject: Closing the website?
Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 9:21 pm
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Why would any company close an Internet store but not the physical stores? That's nuts. If a company is downsizing they'll look at overhead first. What's the rent on the website? What's the rent in a mall? Even if they closed some small-market stores, a la Starbucks, it doesn't mean that the website goes black with them. Rumors aren't worth spit.[/quote]


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Post subject: Re: Closing the website?
Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 10:16 pm
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painter33 wrote:
Why would any company close an Internet store but not the physical stores? That's nuts. If a company is downsizing they'll look at overhead first. What's the rent on the website? What's the rent in a mall? Even if they closed some small-market stores, a la Starbucks, it doesn't mean that the website goes black with them. Rumors aren't worth spit.
[/quote]

WHAT company? WHICH company? Maybe I lost something in translation, but I don't recall seeing any reference to the above here or anywhere else.

I do remember Tower Records closing down their shops and going strictly online--the direct opposite to what seems to be referred to by painter 33. Painter 33, could you please tell us which company you're talking about?


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Post subject: Re: Closing the website?
Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 10:28 pm
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twangee wrote:
painter33 wrote:
Why would any company close an Internet store but not the physical stores? That's nuts. If a company is downsizing they'll look at overhead first. What's the rent on the website? What's the rent in a mall? Even if they closed some small-market stores, a la Starbucks, it doesn't mean that the website goes black with them. Rumors aren't worth spit.


WHAT company? WHICH company? Maybe I lost something in translation, but I don't recall seeing any reference to the above here or anywhere else.

I do remember Tower Records closing down their shops and going strictly online--the direct opposite to what seems to be referred to by painter 33. Painter 33, could you please tell us which company you're talking about?[/quote]

The second post on the thread by Twangy. "The rumor" is just that and, as I wrote, even if GC closed some physical stores it would be crazy for them to shut down the website (unless they're going belly-up which they are not!) By the way, Tower closed so fast that they locked up before the word was out.






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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 10:58 pm
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Oh. I wasn't sure if you were referring to me, as my screen name is 'twangee', not 'Twangy'. If you ARE referring to me, I don't recall ever using the word 'rumor' in this thread. And I never inferred that GC or any of its' web subsidiaries WOULD shut down. I only made the point that I would not be surprised that GC did shut down some of their lesser producing stores--not any more than I would be suprised if Macy's shut down more stores, or yet another retail chain went out of business in this economic climate. I'm not picking on GC, only mentioning it in context of the original question. Sorry if even mentioning the prospect of this happening is distressing and upsetting to anyone.


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Feb 10, 2009 11:19 pm
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Location: Great White North, EH!
I would imagine that a lot of chains are going to be pruning some locations that are underperforming. But if
http://money.cnn.com/2008/11/10/news/co ... /index.htm
a company this size goes belly up, then it won't surprise me if there are some other high profile casualties.

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Posted: Wed Feb 11, 2009 2:35 am
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Location: Southern California Mountains
I hate to say it, but I've never felt really connected to Guitar Center. As long as the one in Hollywood stays open the rest can turn into Sam Ash's, Tom's Music, or Crazy Gideon's Guitar-Ganza for all I care. I like the management at the San Bernardino GC, but they can sell me guitars from a different distributor if they want.

If Bob's Big Boy can lose it's hold on the Highways, GC can lose it's grip on Guitarists.

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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Feb 11, 2009 6:45 am
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Yes, I suppose they COULD lose their market dominance. But that's not happening.

Circuit City was poorly managed, provided a lousy, slaughterhouse-style user experience, and was always playing catch-up to market crusher Best Buy. Go back through a list of failed regional and national chains from the past 10 to 20 years... how many of them are electronics/appliance stores? (Answer: a bunch of them, most of them regionals who tried to expand too fast, a la Fretter.)

Bob' s Big Boy died because they let product quality slip to the point where the whole chain stank on ice. They were also in the most competitive category in the world (You know that old saw you hear all the time about how many new businesses fail in the first 2 years? 70% of them are restaurants.)

Guitar Center neither of these problems (they're the market leader in a sparsely populated category), and they've been recently and heavily capitalized by an equity investment firm. What really kills companies is lack of capital: GC doesn't have this problem.

There is no business news outlet anywhere that has even hinted that GC is in any kind of trouble, and that's in a press environment where they just can't wait to tell you about the next domino. If they close any stores this year, it will be because those stores are radically under performing, not because GC itself is in danger.


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Post subject:
Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:07 pm
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Location: Bloomfield, NJ
I guess I have to count myself as lucky, I am 20 minutes driving to 4 Guitar Centers in North Jersey, a Sam Ash and a smaller Box store called Richies. I also have a couple of small Mom & Pop shops that I visit. In paramus, there are 2 GC's within a 2 mile radius as the bird flies. Both store are open only 6 days a week and are in the top ten GC's in gross per square foot. I am only 30 minutes to 48th Street in NYC plus the other smaller boutique stores the city offers. I always go to GC first if I want something. Odds are they have it. For guitars, I will check em out at a store then try to hunt one down on ebay, saves some money. I know a few of the salesmen at each store, so they kind of know what my needs are. But you know it's easy to get strings, pedals, picks, books, cables, mics and such. If you need it it's there. For all the bad, some people on the forum could probably find something bad about Mother Teresa. let's just say, they serve their market. Lets face it, at christmas time or birthdays, lots of people get their first guitars or one of those beginner packages there. Then, like all of us, they go back, playing new guitars and adding more things. Then as they grow, they find Ebay and Muscians Friend or Sweetwater. It's the natural cycle of things. Let's hope they won't be closing any stores and celebrate the fact that in spite of the good and bad, they continue to serve our community to the best of their abilities.


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