@ironlung - sorry you are down on the industry, disillusioned and miserable. Most of the stores I see out there are exactly what you say you need to find; someone who knows what they are doing and gives a s**t. They are the owners of the typically higher end stores who might have an assistant or two, but the owners negotiate the prices. If those guys are what you say they are, they wouldn't be in business. Most of them have been around a LONG time, some 40+ years. They don't need the money anymore, and the ones that are gone from the business are the ones who weren't as passionate about it as their competitors. I don't know what you mean by an "entire dealer".
The multi-location stereo chains are a rarity, other than Best Buy's Magnolia, which used to be a chain. They are more a home automation and video business/installation service that happens to carry audio, which takes up a lot of their space, and probably is a money loser. I think in all of metro Phila there is one multi store chain that I have never been in - they are lower end and focus a great deal on video and installations. Nobody there knows anything about a turntable, and I'd be scared to have them install a cartridge for me.
Younger people don't have much money, and they were raised on iPhones and iPods. As they get older, they will spend more on audio, but most will not have the passion because they never really were interested growing up. There is however a growing group of hipsters that think turntables are cool. Hopefully, they can make some money and maybe will actually be interested in great sounding audio to keep the industry strong, not just the coolness factor because some demographic chasing talk show host has a turntable in the background on their set (the pompous hipster doofus wannabe Steve Colbert). I don't think anyone thinks being an audiophile is cool.
