Our local music store is excellent. Iâm in a community of ~ 100,000, with no real competition to this one store. They know our names in the store, theyâre always friendly, ask if weâre looking for something and if weâre not they leave us be to browse and pick up guitars. The dad very unfortunately passed away almost 2 years ago, and before that he would always engage us in conversation, and provide lots of detail about whatever we were looking at. I feel like I can play well enough now (on acoustic anyway) that Iâm not too shy to pick up a guitar and play, but even in the days when I was I never ever got any kind of negative viwfrom them. Everyone there is friendly, and helpful. They really seem to want to help you find exactly what youâre looking for. They sell mainly guitars, and they do have a lot, but they also sell other instruments, including digital pianos. I like them so much that 6 or 7 years ago when I wanted to buy a digital piano we went to Toronto to look, as the selection locally was so small, and when I found what I wanted I phoned them first to tell them what I wanted to buy and see if they could order it in for me. I would have loved to give them the business. Anyway, our local music store is one of my 2 favorite music stores, but customer service wise itâs absolutely the best. Itâs also a family-owned store, if that makes a difference. Sorry your experience at your store is not the same!
I wouldnât give a bad experience a second chance if there are decent alternatives. Itâs customer service basics to make customers feel welcome. A business that canât get those basics right doesnât deserve to be successful.
Iâm at our local music shop all the time because my kids get their weekly piano lessons there. Iâve bought a few things - strings, picks, piano stuff. Their range isnât great though, so often buy online instead.
Theyâre smart about how they do business - their volume is low so they trade used guitars & amps more than new. Also do music lessons, guitar setups, etc. And are super friendly.
Selling new stuff is a volume game - low markup, high volume, which doesnât work well for small shops.
This sounds like a phantastic place, Mari⌠and of course while maybe not large, much bigger than the store I visited on Saturday.
Thatâs exactly the sad and bitter feeling with which I had left the small shop on Saturday @jkahn
Surely Daveâs words about second chances are wise and giving a second chance is the decent thing to do at some point ⌠but that may take time. For now, Iâll continue visiting the large chain music store instead which is only a few km further away⌠while they offer somewhat impersonal service I did feel welcome there.
There are better and worse days. Maybe there is a story why this shopkeeper was so detached. I only visit a luthier workshop from time to time and we always have a good chat. I never went to a music store as I always order everything online.
I have the opposite experience at larger guitar stores (except Sweetwater in Indiana, thatâs a whole different experience!)
When I went looking for my first acoustic guitar, I had looked at a few shops near the Detroit area and I still felt awkward wherever I went because I was only 6 months into my journey and couldnât do much more than play a few chords in random order (apparently the songs I was learning werenât kicking in at the time).
For the most part I was ignored, the shops were small, other customers were taking up the time of anyone who worked there, and me being rather shy in new situations didnât help. I went to the local Guitar Center down there (probably the largest national chain the US), there were lots of customers and salespeople, but everyone was busy, and I was ignored. I tried a bunch of acoustics but still felt lost.
However, on my drive home I stopped at the Guitar Center nearest my home (still a 2-hour drive from here). There were 2 salespeople there, one at the checkout and another who looked like sheâd rather be anywhere else. However, I wandered in, looked at a few more acoustics, felt unsatisfied, then happened to wander by the used guitar section where I found the red PRS electric. I actually took it down and asked for a cable to plug it in. She did that for me, and I played a few chords and man, the sound was awesome! Another customer walked by and said something along the lines of, "ah P90s, youâll really like that.)
I did like that, a lot, so instead of an acoustic I came home with it and have been a happy camper ever since. And though I have no intention of going to any of these guitar stores anytime soon, except my local shop if I need strings, etc. at least I wonât feel like a rank amateur, so I suspect I wonât be intimidated anymore.
(I did end up with an acoustic when I visited Sweetwater on our travels to Texas in April, boy I wish that place was closer!!)