High end stores closing do you really care

Never encountered that type of snobbery. In fact, ten to twenty years ago, most were willing to demonstrate systems that they knew were well beyond my means. Some had plenty of advice and opinions that I took with a grain of salt. However, without that exposure to various brands, I would have had no idea how well music can be reproduced.

I've heard what really killed the high-end shops was the returns. A salesman told me that over half the gear was returned after a few days of test driving. Naturally, it could not be sold as new anymore and that dug into the margins.

It's a loss, mostly, to the younger generation that won't get the opportunity to develop a discerning ear.

This thread brings up some points that are central to what customer service and satisfaction are all about. Do you buy a car without a test drive? What about a business suit? Why should high performance audio be any different?

I recognize some items that you can't try before you buy, say a phono cartridge. But are you well versed in setting one up and have the requisite tools for doing it accurately for maximizing performance? I don't know about other dealers, but for example someone here in the Chicago area who buys a cartridge from me gets the full setup at his or her home included in a fair price.

Some mention that they find in home auditions difficult if not impossible to get. Wow, I can't imagine putting up with that. Someone who wants to try a preamp or CD player or even a pair of speaker cables has that opportunity, because I don't believe in forcing people to make snap purchasing decisions - been there, done that, regretted it later.

Some storefronts are going away, it's inevitable with the mail order and direct sales models and for dealers not pulling their weight, but not for the high end where careful selection and system matching are valued. My advice is, find a dealer in your area who goes out of his way to help you optimize system performance, and reward his efforts with your business and referrals. A 30 day money back offer is no substitute for an in home audition before the sale and support long after the sale. I suppose this may be viewed as self serving, but supporting local retailers is your only means to ensure they will be around to help, otherwise you will be forced to deal with box movers whom you never see before or after the sale, and the high end will vanish as the industry is dumbed-down and commoditized. It truly is a self fulfilling prophesy.

''My advice is, find a dealer in your area who goes out of his way to help you optimize system performance, and reward his efforts with your business and referrals''

Great advice. Let me know if you ever hear of one will you?

Thanks!

Its a shame Sonicbeauty thinks dealers who go the extra mile are a myth, they are real.....maybe few but real.
Audio Connection in Verona NJ is a great store with a helpful staff and have been out to my dad's a couple times for follow-ups and this stores efforts will be rewarded whenever possible. They have also mailed me products to try, even though I do not live in NJ.
I think many who have dealt with John and his staff will agree with everything I have said. Mostly I am in the camp of not really caring about bad stores with bad staff closing shop, then you come across a store like A.C. and it makes you re-think your position.

Interesting thread....

I can't imagine losing my local dealer. Sure, he and I don't see eye to eye on everything, but he has always taken good care of me. I don't pay retail there, but my discount isn't huge. The extra that I pay is easily made up in the level of service that I receive.

For instance:

Ordered a new pair of speakers with 6 week wait (no deposit taken) and he's given me his demo pair to use in the mean time.

Equipment loans are very common. At one point I had close to 50K worth of gear on loan as I was trying to decide between multiple preamps and amplifiers. After realizing that I couldn't satisfy all of my criteria with the products that he had available he encouraged me to look for a couple of used/discontinued products that would work. Let me keep the demos until I located the used gear.

I've spent a lot of money with him over the years (probably close to $100k), but the level of service has always been like this.

His shop isn't much to look at, but that really doesn't matter at all. The interesting thing is that he is the last true high end shop left in town. 5 years ago there were at least 5 true high-end stores. 3 years ago there were 3... Now he's the last one left.