Ebay and the internet ruining the market??

[3kgtAudio 10+ year member]

I wonder how some of these shops can keep their doors open these days. I have worked in the car audio industry for more than 10 years and I am very familiar with dealer prices.

What blows my mind is that ebay sellers can be selling new audio equipment for 5% or less markup over dealer cost?? I am all for saving money, but it kills the mom and pop audio shop on the corner. Don't these companies have a mandatory minimum retail price that products must be sold for??

I do it too, I have bought stuff from ebay because I knew I couln't get it cheaper anywhere else. It really sucks if you are trying to sell anything yourself. I bought some Diamond audio comps less than one year ago, never got around to installing them because I decided to go with some Dynaudio comps. I will be dammed if I can't sell those speakers for even 50% of what I paid for them, and when I bought them it was pennys over dealer cost.

I used to make some pretty good money as an installer, usually about $3k a month, this day in age that doesn't sound like much but for being 21 years old it wasn't bad, and cost of living was quite a bit less back then.

I have been self employed for a while, but for a short while I considered getting back into the industry and becoming an installer again, but I will be dammed if I could find a shop that would pay a decent wage. Most places are paying around $400 a week, and I gotta say that this Ebay wave of cheap *** prices has to have something to do with it. I guess its time to move into another industry. Car audio was a lot of fun, but lets face it, its going nowhere. Back in the mid-late 90's it was the latest and greatest thing, with new shops popping up all over the place. But I think its run its course, and the only people left will be the big corporate shops (i/e circuit city, best buy etc) and the ones that specialize in hard core custom installation.

Anyways, sorry just venting a bit, I know saving money here and there is a good thing, but too much and then you cut out a lot of people that depend on it too.

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[LoudCrownVic 5,000+ posts]

x2, I always go in the shop and nearly shit at the prices.

But, I realize that is to help keep open and pay their installers/ keep them fed and watered and ship the stuff there.

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

I don't think it's destroying the industry, I think it's changing it - possibly for the better.

There will always be a need for competent installers. What Ebay is doing is simply making it where the shops that overcharge and gouge customers are losing business to the smart ones //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

The Internet has also ushered in a new era of small, direct-to-market companies like Soundsplinter, Decware, even pre-dealership RE - companies that never would have survived in a market-driven paradigm. It's brought a lot of new things to the table.

 

[3kgtAudio 10+ year member]

Its not price gouging. Every company has a suggested retail price for every product, and ebayers are selling for at or under dealer cost. Another fatal flaw is product support, that ebay powerseller you just bought from probably could care less if your amp blows up 2 weeks after you buy it, and you will have a hell of a time getting it warrantied. After all, the few $$$$ they made off you, defintely doesn't buy their time.

I mean, for example pioneer, I looked right at our dealer price book in one shop, and looked up the same product on ebay. In some cases the ebay price was cheaper. The shop still has to make a profit, after all that is business. Ebay is stealing this away from the guys that put their livelyhoods on the line for car audio. You my look at it as putting an extra buck in your pocket, but when you have installers standign around on commission *****ing about paying their rent that week, it sucks.

Look at it this way, you take away all the profit in the product, you get underpaid incompetent installers.

yeah, but the thing is, those prices are probably still below the suggested retail price. No brick and mortal shop could mark up their prices by $2 and expect to survive. But the ebayers do it, because they don't stock inventory, or if they do its in their basement. It actually becomes a war of who can sell for the cheapest. Because he who has the lowest price will sell.

We have been ebayed out man, we all now expect dealer cost for everything. Sucks for the middle man

 

[El Ropo 10+ year member]

It's called the free market economy.

 

[iceteebone 5,000+ posts]

i live in the middle of nowhere, with only 1 shop in an 80 mile radius, and i'm banned from his store because i wanted to listen to a pair of $600 subs before i bought them so i choose the internet vs. the local shop. if i know more about car audio then the local shop, for one thing that scares me, next why should i overpay and have someone with less skill (again very afraid here) install my shit?

i also lost my job because people in mexico will make parts for 75 cents an hour. i don't ***** and moan about outsourcing, just gotta move on

 

[zachzchw 5,000+ posts]

It's called the free market economy.

x2.

Its competition- pure and simple.

 

[OldManTod 10+ year member]

The decent shops will survive from people like me... I don't have the time or inclination to pull the Clarion, so I went a shop and put down $350 for a Kenwood Excelon 789 and had it installed.

The shop did an excellent job, Steve spent about 20 minutes showing me the features and I drove away happy with my new purchase..

The shops will still be in business, like a previous post said, the sh!tty ones will be the ones suffering (eventually).

T

 

[bimma85 5,000+ posts]

99% of ebay items have no real warranty //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif Of course its way cheaper. Its mostly refurbed and closeout merchandise. As for things like how the new type rs popped up so quick and so cheap, I couldnt tell ya //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crap.gif.7f4dd41e3e9b23fbd170a1ee6f65cecc.gif.

 

[slick316 10+ year member]

I work in a car audio shop, and I can't say that the Internet and the prices of products on the Internet are "killing" us, but its not helping.

There will always be those customers that will pay us to install the stuff for them, buy stuff from us since we are close to where they live, and even more than that, they like talking to real people about the stuff they bought.

I can see if you live in a small town with limited to no availability on car audio, but I still encourage people to seek out what they want from a dealer in another town. However, I don't see the point if all you are looking at is a $200 headunit, maybe a full blown system.

Remember, most of the stuff found on the net is not supposed to be there, so you shouldn't whine and complain if the manufacturer doesn't warranty issues with the product.

 

[Alpineinstaller 10+ year member]

I wonder how some of these shops can keep their doors open these days. I have worked in the car audio industry for more than 10 years and I am very familiar with dealer prices.
What blows my mind is that ebay sellers can be selling new audio equipment for 5% or less markup over dealer cost?? I am all for saving money, but it kills the mom and pop audio shop on the corner. Don't these companies have a mandatory minimum retail price that products must be sold for??

I do it too, I have bought stuff from ebay because I knew I couln't get it cheaper anywhere else. It really sucks if you are trying to sell anything yourself. I bought some Diamond audio comps less than one year ago, never got around to installing them because I decided to go with some Dynaudio comps. I will be dammed if I can't sell those speakers for even 50% of what I paid for them, and when I bought them it was pennys over dealer cost.

I used to make some pretty good money as an installer, usually about $3k a month, this day in age that doesn't sound like much but for being 21 years old it wasn't bad, and cost of living was quite a bit less back then.

I have been self employed for a while, but for a short while I considered getting back into the industry and becoming an installer again, but I will be dammed if I could find a shop that would pay a decent wage. Most places are paying around $400 a week, and I gotta say that this Ebay wave of cheap *** prices has to have something to do with it. I guess its time to move into another industry. Car audio was a lot of fun, but lets face it, its going nowhere. Back in the mid-late 90's it was the latest and greatest thing, with new shops popping up all over the place. But I think its run its course, and the only people left will be the big corporate shops (i/e circuit city, best buy etc) and the ones that specialize in hard core custom installation.

Anyways, sorry just venting a bit, I know saving money here and there is a good thing, but too much and then you cut out a lot of people that depend on it too.

I know how you feel.....I only get paid +/-300 a week for my job installing, i hear it everyday "man i can get that cheaper on ebay or best buy" they dont under stand profit is what keeps me fed.

 

[theCybe 5,000+ posts]

It's a buyers market, that's for sure;

If shops put more emphasis on quality of service and installation / consulting, and less emphasis on marking up kickers and jl audios, ..

 

[lubetek 10+ year member]

long live the internet. I wanted to buy all my audio equipment at my local shops. So I went to these shops to check out the kit and prices. Holy shit the dealers are way expensive. I can go online and buy everything at HALF the cost from a local dealer. Most of the online stores are dealers anyway. Most have a store somewhere in the USA. I don't shop on ebay much but I do buy on-line because the local shops are (IMO) taking advantage of us consumers. If people online can sell these things this cheap then so can the dealers in your home town. They (the dealers) chose not to because they would rather mark up the prices and make more money. Fine, but they will not get MY money.

 

[Hartman 10+ year member]

If retailers want to compete, they better jump on the internet bandwagon too. I say we could use a lot more reliable internet companies.

 

[Alpineinstaller 10+ year member]

long live the internet. I wanted to buy all my audio equipment at my local shops. So I went to these shops to check out the kit and prices. Holy shit the dealers are way expensive. I can go online and buy everything at HALF the cost from a local dealer. Most of the online stores are dealers anyway. Most have a store somewhere in the USA. I don't shop on ebay much but I do buy on-line because the local shops are (IMO) taking advantage of us consumers. If people online can sell these things this cheap then so can the dealers in your home town. They (the dealers) chose not to because they would rather mark up the prices and make more money. Fine, but they will not get MY money.

dealers mark up their prices according to what they pay for the merch and shipping, internet companies buy a whole shit load of stuff at one time whether it be gray stock or refurbs. Then they mark it up according to their bulk buy. Mom and pop stores don't buy in bulk so their markup is higher due to dealer costs.