shop owners

[blobb454 10+ year member]

We HAD Soundman, but their pricing was full retail with no wiggle room. Seems all the Amplified fame got to their heads after a while, Allyn left, and the shop couldn't keep up. Now the remaining guys are working out of some small garage trying to make ends meet. Never found out if Doug moved back to the midwest or not, though.
I guess things are different here in LA, but we really don't have anyone who carries brands like Incriminator, DC, or Sundown that I've seen. Image Dynamics? Of course. But they have to compete with Woofers Etc, too.

There is a few stereo shops that are with in 30 min drive of where I live. I did once drive to one of the places to see what it was all about. They carried JL and some other stuff I never even heard of... And when I was talking to the owner of the store he was supper cool! And when an owner is that cool, and I need something Ill see if I can buy from him. At that time I was wanting a custom built enclosure for my G-con 12" and the guy was like, yeah easy no problem, and it would cost like 120.00 so I all over it. He asked me to give him about 3-4 days to make it. No problem. Day 4, as a courtesy to not bother him on day 3, I call and he says oh.... I forgot to have that built.. Can you give me 2 more days and he will have it built and also discount it for inconvenience. I was like god yeah man please! Well I wait for him to call me this time and nothing... Week later... I call and he says oh man.. Im sorry. Blah blah.. He asked if I was still interested and I said no, Ill just buy a prefab. Which I didnt but.. Fook man really?? Poor business if you ask me. Never went back.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

There is a few stereo shops that are with in 30 min drive of where I live. I did once drive to one of the places to see what it was all about. They carried JL and some other stuff I never even heard of... And when I was talking to the owner of the store he was supper cool! And when an owner is that cool, and I need something Ill see if I can buy from him. At that time I was wanting a custom built enclosure for my G-con 12" and the guy was like, yeah easy no problem, and it would cost like 120.00 so I all over it. He asked me to give him about 3-4 days to make it. No problem. Day 4, as a courtesy to not bother him on day 3, I call and he says oh.... I forgot to have that built.. Can you give me 2 more days and he will have it built and also discount it for inconvenience. I was like god yeah man please! Well I wait for him to call me this time and nothing... Week later... I call and he says oh man.. Im sorry. Blah blah.. He asked if I was still interested and I said no, Ill just buy a prefab. Which I didnt but.. Fook man really?? Poor business if you ask me. Never went back.

Proof that some shop owners need to write everything down. Honestly, making an enclosure when that's one of your primary moneymakers shouldn't be too incredibly difficult. Do I think he legitimately forgot? Definitely, but that doesn't excuse the delay. The saying goes "fool me once, shame on you. fool me twice, shame on me."

 

[DARKHART 10+ year member]

There is a few stereo shops that are with in 30 min drive of where I live. I did once drive to one of the places to see what it was all about. They carried JL and some other stuff I never even heard of... And when I was talking to the owner of the store he was supper cool! And when an owner is that cool, and I need something Ill see if I can buy from him. At that time I was wanting a custom built enclosure for my G-con 12" and the guy was like, yeah easy no problem, and it would cost like 120.00 so I all over it. He asked me to give him about 3-4 days to make it. No problem. Day 4, as a courtesy to not bother him on day 3, I call and he says oh.... I forgot to have that built.. Can you give me 2 more days and he will have it built and also discount it for inconvenience. I was like god yeah man please! Well I wait for him to call me this time and nothing... Week later... I call and he says oh man.. Im sorry. Blah blah.. He asked if I was still interested and I said no, Ill just buy a prefab. Which I didnt but.. Fook man really?? Poor business if you ask me. Never went back.

Yeah I think he MISSED a perfect opportunity to gain a possible life long customer. I understand that we are all human and make mistakes, god knows I have, but how and what we learn from those mistakes is what determines how you and your company will be perceived and I'm here to tell you that 1.) your reputation means EVERYTHING in a retail setting and 2.) great customer service is a dying art form.

 

[blobb454 10+ year member]

Yeah I think he MISSED a perfect opportunity to gain a possible life long customer. I understand that we are all human and make mistakes, god knows I have, but how and what we learn from those mistakes is what determines how you and your company will be perceived and I'm here to tell you that 1.) your reputation means EVERYTHING in a retail setting and 2.) great customer service is a dying art form.

YES! Completely agree. I wanted a stereo shop I could call up and talk to the owner like hes a friend....

 

[Jay Biz 10+ year member]

I have gained alot of patience from dealing with shops here. Once, I was told 10ft of unknown 4 gauge wire will run $50 +tax, not happening!!! So i ordered Knu CCA $16 and waited on shipping. I went to a different shop and asked for ANL fuse holder. Shop worker replied "what kind?" round and round we went and he came up with $40 and $15 for a fuse. Really??

I do recommend local shops for alarm installs, and tint.

 

[Jay Biz 10+ year member]

And I remember a few years back the shops here were pushing Almani and JC Power like crack!!! I am so glad I didnt get on that train.

 

[d77543020 10+ year member]

its pretty much universal most shops will try to **** you on installation products 1 shop around my way charges 6 bucks a foot for 0 gauge wire that was a no name flea market brand that you can get on eBay for 25 bucks a spool

 

[SamIam71]

I am way up in Upstate New York, and when I contacted the local shop about getting 2 Sa10's and a box built, it was over before it started. First, the guy was all about Sundown. He said they had just won some rookie class something or another with 2 12's on 1200 watts, and they were the best subs ever.Then he goes on to say that they are not for retail though. Before even asking what I was looking at paying for them, he said they are better to be bought on the internet. Then he ask what kind of price I was getting on them. I told him around $180 each, and he reaffirmed, he cuold not get close to that price. He quoted me 600 bucks for a box for them, I about died. I respectfully declined his bid, and was really left wondering what just happened in the conversation. I suppose they know their stuff if they are out there winning competitions, but if parts are too high to retail, and they are forced to charge sky high rates on labor to make up for it, what are these shops to do?

 

[ABSOLUTEAUDIO 10+ year member]

This thread reminds me why i sell brands like Digital designs and Incriminator audio,Crossfire. They keep close tabs on there products and dealers and customers... The OP is 100% right on Re audio-us amps, I sold there products for 10 years before dropping them. RE audio-us amps where known for having top notch build quality and now look at it.... They have flooded the market with cheap quantity not quality products!!!!!

 

[d77543020 10+ year member]

yea good luck to any re dealer out there they are so cheap on ebay why would anyone pay close to retail 2 re Audio RTPRO10D4 10" 420 Watt RMS Dual 4 Ohm Car Subwoofers Subs | eBay

 

[bbeljefe]

It's true that the internet has changed the way brick and mortar shops have to do business but that's not unique to car audio and, it's not a bad thing either... even though some dealers obviously think it is.

The largest and most filthy rich people in the newspaper and record industries also have a healthy hatred for the internet. Why is that? Has the net made it more difficult for consumers to get the music and news hey want? Quite the opposite. Are they mad because customers no longer get one on one service? Obviously not, because record and news industry executives rarely, if ever, even speak to their end users.

So why are they all mad at the interwebz? Because it stole their cash cow. And, it made competition easier and it gave consumers more choice and lower prices.

I hear the same lamenting from a lot of car audio shops when the internet is mentioned and all I can say to them is... why weren't you working to make the web work for you ten years ago instead of sitting on your haunches and waiting until the tsunami of technology ran you over? The answer is obvious. Because they didn't care to keep up with technology. They only cared to make huge profits for little work, much the same as the record and news industry has done for decades.

I knew when I re-entered the car audio business earlier this year that I wouldn't be able to to it like it had been done in the past. So I didn't try to do it like it was done in the past. I found a quality line that gives me a protected area and does not foist quotas on me and then I focused on making my shop entirely different than any other shop in my area. For me the latter was easy peasy, because I'm a lifelong basshead and music lover so consulting with customers is more like teaching a friend about your favorite hobby than actually being a salesman.

I mean FFS I get to go to work and talk about, and do, what I love to do. Who else can say that about their job? The results of that attitude are more often than not, that I have customers who stop price shopping me... because they trust me. And just about everyone is willing to pay more to someone they trust than they are to pay less to someone they don't. I know I am. I'll even pay more than asked by a friend or someone I trust, simply because I appreciate knowing that the person I'm dealing with actually gives a shite about what I need and expect from them. I know I'm not the only one who thinks like that too... because I've had a number of people who've paid more than I asked. I wonder how many shop owners who ***** about internet sales are regularly being tipped by their customers?

But to address the original question in this thread, yes, I would drop a line that no longer fit my business model for whatever reason that was. And I'll make changes to how I model my business as time goes on because the beauty of capitalism is its creative destruction. Those who refuse to change with the times get washed away by those who will face changes and make them work better for the consumer and the retailer. And after all, business owners, market demand (the consumer) is our boss. And that's just about the only thing that will never, ever change.