Walking Into A Brick & Mortar High End Audio Store

I understand that times are tough in the B&M shops. It's a very tough business to be in, now, more than ever. That said, there are clear success stories out there. Obviously, there's many variables involved with success but this thread got me to thinking of an old mentor from my younger days. He was one of the most successful salesman in a team of successful salesmen. Not naturally good looking but he made himself very attractive. Sharp, aggressive, funny, smart, high energy. He was like a loveable shark! I'll never forget him telling me once how it didn't matter what the product was, he considered himself a SALESMAN 1st and foremost. My favorite quote of his was "I should be able to pick a turd up off the street and make you feel like you MUST own it!!". I loved this guy (RIP). Because of him (and others like him that I used to deal with) I've always seen the stereotypical audio sales guys as being kind of whiney.

I've been in Lyric twice, both times when the shop was near empty on CHristmas Eve, and the person there, who appeared to be a manager or owner, was very accommodating and courteous. HE greeted me immediately, asked if he could help me, and I told him I was visiting from out of town and mostly just looking but had general interest in good audio gear. He proceeded to demonstrate his top of teh line big rigs in the back rooms. Very nice! I appreciated it and always try to go back when in NYC.

I've also been to Sound By SInger in NYC twice while visiting under similar circumstances and had more mixed results there. I think they closed up shop shortly after that for whatever reason.

Deja Vu Audio outside DC is very accommodating and has great equipment and knowledgable staff.

JWM wrote:

>>If people don't want to bother an audio salesman with no intentions of buying they can go to an audio show instead. There are so many now that one can go and hear without buying anything and not feel guilty. The shows have way more equipment and so many people under one roof that you can have a great time.

IMO, audio shows are great for looking but usually not so great for listening or evaluating audio gear.

>>Are you kidding? Audiogon allows 40-50% off of retail. Brick and Mortar if your lucky 10-20%. These people are not going to buy there no matter how nice the salesperson talks.

Is it really fair to compare a B&M store to Audiogon? Audiogon provides a space to sell (mostly) used gear. Most B&Ms forcus on new gear, although some sell or specialize in used gear. I think that you will typically find that the price for almost any piece of used gear sold at a B&M would be within spitting distance of the Audiogon price for the same gear. The market determines the value (price), not the seller.

When I was a teenager, and that was quite some time ago, I used to go into an audio store after school and hang out with the salesman and listen to gear. They knew they weren't going to make big bucks off of me, but not much was going on, and they were kind and generous and helped me develop into this hobby. Ultimately I did buy a Nakamichi 582 cassette deck from them that thousand dollars, which was a lot of money back then.