I love that places like Harrod's exist. Especially in this day of big box retailers. I really miss some of the nice departments stores that have been driven under. You pay more at places like these but somehow the item seems much more special.
Unexpected High-End Retail Experience
I was in the UK in the recent past, and as one of several tourist things to do, went to visit Harrod's department store. When I found myself on the electronics floor, I came across a number of high-end systems on display. First up was a pair of the exotic new KEF super speakers - only 100 pairs to be made, retail for 70,000 GBP. They had them hooked up and playing music, very softly, but not in any sort of way you could audition them.
They also had several other high-end, if not quite as exotic, set-ups. They had a whole Chord stack of electronics, as well as several systems based on tube amps and preamps. All were on display at full retail, and none were in any sort of setup that could be auditioned - just looked at.
What sort of success rate does a place like Harrod's have selling multi-thousand dollar (or pounds) systems at full retail by just putting them out to display like this? I didn't have the time or interest to try to get a sales person engaged long enough to see if they have some sort of value-add, or how much they knew about what was on display.
In any case, I definitely wasn't expecting to come across gear of that caliber at a department store, even if it is one of the most famous department stores in the world.
They also had several other high-end, if not quite as exotic, set-ups. They had a whole Chord stack of electronics, as well as several systems based on tube amps and preamps. All were on display at full retail, and none were in any sort of setup that could be auditioned - just looked at.
What sort of success rate does a place like Harrod's have selling multi-thousand dollar (or pounds) systems at full retail by just putting them out to display like this? I didn't have the time or interest to try to get a sales person engaged long enough to see if they have some sort of value-add, or how much they knew about what was on display.
In any case, I definitely wasn't expecting to come across gear of that caliber at a department store, even if it is one of the most famous department stores in the world.
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- 6 posts total
- 6 posts total