Guitar Center in trouble

Artical talks about declining guitar sales, imagine where keyboard sales are ? And the section on kids learning instruments is right on. They want it now with no investment in time or work, believe me I know from experience.

https://www.dailynews.com/2018/03/20/gui...musical-tastes/

It's a sad commentary on those young folks who "want instant gratificaiton" and don't want to do the work to learn.

When I’m teaching, I encourage students to learn an instrument vs. spending hours on mind numbing games on their devices.

times are changing fast...Toys are US, Guitar Center, etc, etc.it's just a matter of time to only online music stores.. ............

https://clark.com/shopping-retail/major-retailers-closing-2017/

Th g.c. Nearest me is small because it has studios where they give music and voice lessons, another angle to their business.

As to guitars, I've been surprised at the amount of models within a brand manufactured. Minute options become additional models to the point of over saturating the g.c. wall of guitars.

I've seen models from Ibanez with exact descriptions with different item numbers where I can't see a difference in specs, and I'm not a novice. Of course if I go into a g.c., I'm treated like one by some kid..

I'm not surprised. Keep in mind that most of the GC stores are manned by relatively young people that have little or no technical expertise, very narrow musical experience, usually only a single instrument, little or no retail sales experience, and I seriously doubt they are paid very high, so there tends to be a high rate of employee turnover. We have several independently owned music stores in Maryland that have been around for more than a half century and continue to do well. Their employees are very knowledgeable, have a lot of technical expertise, sales experience, and they take care of their customers. Granted, their prices may be a bit higher, but usually not that much higher than GC. Most have their own service departments and the vast majority are factory authorized service centers for much of the equipment they sell.

GC will go the way of many other similar businesses, and for the same reasons.

Gary

Gary. Your right on. A good friend who worked in a band with me years back was a dept. manager at a new GC. Made peanuts and worked his tail off.
As for the students if they would look at their"musical heros" they would see a common thread of time spent "wood shedding" to reach a high level on their instrument. But then again the rock star, who can sing/scream really high with no training gets all the attention and $$$. Go figure.

Gibson guitars who have been a historic instrument manufacturer in the USA for over a century look like they have only a few months left before they go under. http://www.rockandbluesmuse.com/2018/02/28/end-gibson-guitars-bankruptcy-rumors-staff-layoffs/

In case you didn't read Nigel's link above, here is an interesting excerpt from it:

----------------------------------
"In addition, the popularity of the guitar might have suffered over the last decade or two. Younger music listeners may not gravitate to guitar-driven music, and the focus of the guitar hero is not as in vogue as it was in the 60’s, 70’s. It’s been reported that fewer pre-teens and teens are learning guitar and instead, are gravitating to making music with technology.

That is a shame. I sure hope the pendulum swings back on that one. You don’t have to possess musical talent to make music using technology."
------------------------------------

Hmmmm, wonder if that last statement also applies to arranger keyboards as well. I have often said, although many (including some school music programs) disagree, that I would NEVER give a child an arranger keyboard as a BEGINNING instrument. IMO, the 'basics' have to come first.

chas

It is all about instant gratification. My granddaughter said she wanted a keyboard at about 16 yrs old, and I said I had one I would give her only if she was serious about learning music. She said "Oh no, I have a friend in school that can teach me in a week everything I need to know". I told her about the proper scope of learning it and she wanted to argue about it. She didn't get the keyboard.

Kudos to you, Bernie. Hard as it is not to give in to the grandkids, there are times when you need to 'stand your ground' .

chas

OT taking the thread in another direction but I wanted to mention I watched a special last night about Marion McPartland, jazz pianist and 30 year host of a jazz piano radio show. Her guest was Dave Brubeck. WOW ! A friend stopped by to wait for his wife who had gone out with mine. He's not a musician but we both sat there for 40 minutes hardly speaking. All I said was I wish had devoted myself to serious jazz piano study instead of pursuing the gigs in rock / pop or my years of Classical training.
There are some fantastic musicians out there but unfortunately they just don't get the exposure the singing stars get.

Good ridence Guitar Center they are really Kmart for music eqpt Poor qlty nobody no anything

ever since Ban Capitol purchased them they have gone down hill

i will not buy anything from them again.

who remembers MARS Music store all over ......sadly all gone also..

http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2002-09...sic-superstores

https://www.mixonline.com/recording/amassets-liquidate-39-mars-music-stores-374978

Mars Music had a huge store here, remained in business for about 3 years, then the building was taken over by EJ Korvette, which went out of business in 1980. I purchased one of my first guitar amps at Mars Music in Parkville, MD and later used it for my first arranger keyboard. Sure was a long time ago. Ironically, I purchased that arranger from Musicland Bel Air, MD in 1978 and it was made by the same folks that made our microwave oven back then - Samsung. I had it for a few years, then upgraded to a PSR-500 and paired it up with a Korg M1. I have never purchased an arranger keyboard from GC.

All the best,

Gary

Bill, In 2005 we got to see McPartland and Linda Rondstat at Mechanics hall in Worcester, Pianist Alan Broadbent was also there for the show. The event was the taping of the show piano jazz that was broadcast at a later date.

https://www.npr.org/2013/03/15/174433739/linda-ronstadt-on-piano-jazz

Oh, no, Bernie, what a sad report! Honestly, I wonder where this world is headed. Technology could bring on the end. Or, at least, a reset after total collapse!

I'm keeping my eyes and ears open and saving my pennies for the big liquidation sale. I think the article mentioned 18 months, but sometimes a store goes belly-up overnight. Sam Ash should buy a voodoo doll and put a pic of GC on it and hang it up maybe in the men's room with a sign that requests you stick a pin it every time you flush.

Guitar Center owns Musicians Friend, so they will probably liquidate through them if the time comes. It has been rumored for years that they are going under.

Bernie
Should of called her bluff and told her "I'll lend you the keyboard for TWO WEEKS, then come back and show me all you learned from your friend " Great life lesson.