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

"This is at least a 8 hour job."

How long does it take for those amplifiers to be assembled in the factory?

"...there is NO PROFIT on this at all."

Raise the price. $40 000 and no whining.

Only key piece of information:

"These are packed and put away. Can you tell me what kind of system would you want it demonstrated with ? Please call the store...Probably $500.00 which will be applied to purchase price of $16995.00"

Translation:   My overdue electric bill is about $500.....

The dealer tried to justify this expense/charge by stating that time was involved in setting up a system for the demo of these amps.  THAT IS WHAT A DEALER DOES !  THAT IS THE REASON WHY B/M SHOPS ARE DIFFERENT THAN ONLINE  SELLERS !    Dealers and B/M shops are expected to provide a higher and different level of service than an online vendor.   If a DEALER is unwilling to provide these services, or is oblivious  to the need to do so, then the Dealer should find another line of work.

20+yrs ago I encountered a "by appointment only" dealer who tried to extract a demo charge before setting an appointment.  The dealer had several pieces I was interested in, and the price points were acceptable to me.  My reply was laughter.   I found another area dealer who had the same items, at roughly the same price points, and I purchased what I wanted to purchase.  No charge to demo, or set an appointment, or walk into the store.   I later went back to the offending dealer and showed him a copy of my receipt as evidence of my purchases.   He was not happy.  I quietly explained that I would have done business with him, but found his demo charge to be offensive.  I then found a more accommodating dealer who received my business.  Offending dealer went out of business within 12mos of my interactions with him.  

The market always wins.

OK, katzenjammers, I apologize upfront if this gets pedantic, but I’m thinking from experience here and it’s kinda up my alley. Back in the golden years (1970-1990) I benefitted from all the yuppies-coming-of-age (I was one) and the simultaneous rise of audio/video toys in everyday life. It was fine! I actually made a decent living selling expensive stereo in a nice store to nice people. Think of it! In all that time, I NEVER asked for a demo fee. I can see scheduling appointments to audition a system, but what the hell am I there for?

I was general store manager in 4 major stores spanning both coasts and fly-over country. OMG! I worked the floor at Harvey’s in midtown Manhattan. 5th Ave. Hundreds of what salespeople call “strokers” AND buyers flooded in at lunchtime. Heaven on retail earth! But I would never ask for a demo fee. New Yorkers can get emotional.

I remember helping Stevie Wonder one day in LA. I think he had come in to see the owner about his Christmas presents. Remember the Sony D-20 disc-man? They were out for the holidays and he bought about 300 to give to his close friends. I talked him through the Tandberg stack (he had an older one in his bed) and he listened to some Stax. Previously, one of our guys had built him a fourposter bed with 4 KEF 105 mid/tweeter posts and a big sub under the bed. Can’t imagine why. Every one of those freaking Sony’s came back defective! First run! And it had to be practically a no-profit deal to begin with. I digress. But I didn’t ask Stevie for a demo fee.

Let me repeat myself: Brick and Mortar Retail Audio is DEAD! Deceased! A Goner! Look at that sellers AG page. He has huge sums tied up in incredibly slow moving gear AND a showroom in West Covina! West Covina is LA expensive but a Lifetime Away from the big money in LA. This guy is under tremendous pressure even in normal times and now all this? But I wonder:

1. Great demo music should be on ALWAYS in that store.
2. All that gear should be left on all the time anyway. Is it so hard to turn up a volume knob?
3. If I buy it online, without a demo, do I get another $500 off?
4. In another post somewhere I described the malaise that infects most retail salespersons who are caught in a downward spiral—of the economy, the dealer, their own income. When they begin to crack under the pressure, they can come to work with a negative mindset that just becomes further aggravated by strokers. It really is “retail burnout.” Friend of revolving doors everywhere. Ask anyone with more than 10 years selling anything retail.
5. Eventually, surviving retailers will realize that commissioned salespeople are not happy EVER! The owner figures that’s motivation—and it is when there’s traffic in the store. But when times are lean, like now, it’s too important to keep good sales staff happy. Pay them! They’re guarding your big investment! And SAD BAD!
6. Train, train, train. Not at 8AM Saturday! Train at night, after closing, with plenty of beverages! Air it out!

If I had the ability to buy those amps, I’d sure rather be dealing with a professional—given the choice. In fact, I would fly to Covina, listen to the amps, and bring them back with me. Crap! Those used amps are worth as much as the house I bought in the 70s with all that loot I got off nascent boomers.

Never heard of charging for in store demos. While I see the rationale for the charge, kind of defeats it's purpose by decreasing potential customer base. Also, forget the in store demo, doesn't tell you how its going to sound in your room. Seems more reasonable to charge for an in home demo, the store doesn't have to spend time to set up and you can lug the amps out of the store. All they have to do is collect the money, seems like a win win deal to me.