[Trombone-l] End of the Music world is coming

[Chris Waage]

I use both mail-order and local stores, and my rule of thumb is
always, "Buy it local first if you can."

However, we had a Brook Mays branch in Independence, MO, and it was a
joke.  Most of the staff were either retreads that other music stores
had fired or "guitar heroes" with no knowledge of or desire to learn
about band or orchestral instruments.

The last time I shopped there was to pick up an emergency set of
replacement bell mallets for my oldest son.  I told the clerk what I
needed, and was told "I don't know nuthin about that stuff - it's over
there."

And he was the assistant manager.

Yikes.

Chris

> --- Jeff Albert <jeffalbert.smb at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Well, the fact that their service was mediocre at
> > best and their prices were
> > high didn't help either. They stocked very little
> > that fit my needs, so I
> > had no reason not to use internet/mail order places.
> >  I tend to suggest the
> > places that I do business to my students... Maybe
> > that was just my
> > experience with the Brook Mays that were near me
> > here in Louisiana.  Anyway,
> > I do't see it as that big a loss to me as a
> > consumer.  If I worked there, I
> > am sure I would see it differently.
> >
> > I see the threat to traditional music stores more
> > from their own bad
> > business practices than from Wal-Mart.  If the
> > stores treated the teachers
> > and pros right, a large portion of their students
> > would shop at those
> > stores.  When my step son started playing trumpet a
> > couple of years ago, the
> > band director passed out a list of acceptable brand
> > instruments.  It was a
> > long list, probably longer than I would have made
> > it.  The point was that
> > she couldn't tell people where to shop, but she
> > could say "these are
> > respectable brands, and if you buy something else,
> > you are doing your
> > student a disservice."  Well, only real music stores
> > sell those brands.
> >
> > Jeff
> >
> > On 7/21/06, Charles De Paolo <chuck at hickeys.com>
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > Did you read the article?  Their demise is not
> > related to the jury
> > > settlement. The lawsuit was just a thorn in their
> > side. Their insurance
> > > carrier covered most of that, and the millions
> > they had to pay, while
> > > annoying, didn't capsize the ship.  What killed
> > them was WalMart, Target,
> > > Best Buy et al.  And by extension, clueless
> > consumers.
> > >
> > > This has been predicted for years.  Not
> > necessarily that it would be
> > > Brook-Mays who bit the dust, but that traditional
> > rental based retailers
> > > were going to start feeling a serious squeeze from
> > cheap offshore
> > > instruments, big box retailers entering the
> > market, and the continuing
> > > demise of the informed consumer.
> > >
> > > --Chuck
> > >
> > >   I don't know if anybody else is aware of this
> > story or
> > >   if anybody really cares.  Their demise can be
> > >   attributed to the earlier jury settlement.  Word
> > of
> > >   caution, be cautious about what you say about
> > >   instruments brands and quality it could come
> > back and
> > >   bite you big brother is watching.
> > > _______________________________________________
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> > >
> >
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> > >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > www.jeffalbert.com
> >
> > www.scratchmybrain.com
> >
> > www.pepperenterprises.com
> > _______________________________________________
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>
>
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-- 
Chris Waage, Bass Trombonist
chris.waage at gmail.com