Charging A Fee To Demo An Amplifier In A Brick & Mortar Store

I was looking to buy new speakers in the $8k-$12k range a few years back.  A local dealer had a brand which interested me.  I dropped into the store, and the dealer let me listen to a pair of bookshelf speakers by the brand I was interested in.  I like them, but wanted to try out the brand's floorstanders.  I made an appointment for a few days later, and spent a hour or so listening to the floorstanders.  I liked both, but wanted to try at least one of the pairs at home.  I told them that as long as the speakers sounded good at home, I would buy one of the pairs.  The dealer wanted $500 to allow me to take the bookshelf speaker home.  I had to transport and setup.  About half of the $500 was non-refundable.

I balked.  As a long shot, I then called a distributor that carried another brand I was interested in.  He agreed to ship a pair of large floorstanders from St. Louis to SF Area at the same time one of his dealers in Austin was going to be on vacation in SF.  If I didn't like the speakers, I had to pay for return shipping.  The dealer set the speakers up, we listen to music for about 3 hours, had a couple beers.  I really loved the speakers, and bought them.

I would've never called the distributor if I could've auditioned the local pair at home.  Sale lost.  I'm sure the local dealer thinks that I was just a time-waster.

I don't think the fee has anything to do with the setup time required.  Heck, they were setup for the purpose of advertising pictures and getting a sale.  Most people interested in purchases in this price range or better are not likely tire kickers.  The fee does help put pressure on the buyer however to make the purchase rather than lose the fee or use it for something they do not need.

I am puzzled by the majority of the responses. I remember prior to Audiogon and the other"High End" Audio sites you would go to the dealer.
In my travels Mid 1980"s I would look up Stereophonic in the local yellow pages and visit the store. If I found a product I was interested in based on the reviews from various audio magazines I would ask If they would demo the product. I can’t remember when I was refused a demo. Fast forward 2020.......
A friend of mine works in one of the stores that is still in business. He doesn’t own the store he is an employee. He has worked very hard over the past 23 years.
As the online used market grew he has given in store and in home demos countless number of times. He has educated potential customers that have walked away and bought the products online. That training has allowed him to Identify the tire kickers.
We all know the difference between a retail pair of $30,000 mono blocks compared to a slightly used pair.
This is a fantastic hobby that I have enjoyed during my life time. This forum is a great space to research and I would like to thank everyone for their contribution.

If the dealer wants to charge its up to him. You can always take your business elsewhere.
This is a no brainer...... Enjoy.

Maybe they could give you a 10 year trial and call it good.

Actually, if this gear is that great they might let you try it for 30 days at home before making the purchase.

I live in metropolitan Phoenix and I usually go to a dealer when looking for new components every couple of years .  I never get charged with a demo fee here.  I usually read reviews of the equipment I am interested in buying and then listen to it connected to the dealer's system.  I don't expect the sound to be the same but I do ask for current  issues if any about the product I am buying. He always let me listen to his current components on demo which usually last an hour or so .  We talk about my audio system but my dealer always shows  me a similar component if he has one that I can exchange if the component does not perform sonically and even lends me his burned in cables to use . If I like how he treats me at the demo session , I usually come back to buy other items and he usually calls me if he gets an excellent high end component as a trade in. 
The only reason I would pay a demo fee is if he  brings the equipment I am interested in buying to my house, sets it up, and let me listen to it for a few days and decide I don't like how they sound.