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The new shape of home theater shops

Akula

Akula

Well-Known Member
Famous
It's been a while since I was in a HT shop, and the local place near me (The Sound Room) just moved and opened in a new place, and we went by to see what it was like.

I was a little surprised. The focus of the store is pretty clearly now the connected/automated home stuff. Sure, they still had some HT gear, but the listening rooms had gone rather high end- B&W 800 series Diamond stuff, Paradigm Persona, McIntosh amps, etc. Not much in the midrange anymore. The displays were similar- Sony XBR, LG Signature (the OLED one was absolutely incredible).

I know Best Buy, Walmart, and online sources have seriously eaten into the good old HT shop's business, but this showed it pretty clearly. They've gone from just selling gear to more design services. Now someone like me (who shops the midrange stuff, at best) pretty much as to go to those other places for gear because the shops no longer serve that part of the market.

Sad, but that's how it is now.
 
That may be part of it, but...
Many people go into an HT store, figure out what they like best, then whip out their phone to find the best price, and order it. A brick-n-mortar can't compete, and they go out of business eventually. This isn't just happening in audio; people try out kitchen knives, or Gucci handbags, or vacuum cleaners, and do the same thing. That's why Sears is on its last legs, why JCPenney just closed 150 stores, why walmart is going into the Amazon model, camera stores are closing right and left, etc.
 
I've been buying almost all of my home theater, computer, camera and other electronics online for years.
 
I utilize a B&M for a fair amount of my HT purchases. On some items they are every bit as competitive on pricing as online sites. Other items not quite as much but, aside from Anthem stuff, they always go under MSRP. The big difference is support. When I had an issue with an Integra AVR, they just swapped it out with a new one, no hassle, no shipping, no return authorization.
 
I love B&M.

I heard the Sound Room had moved and want to gi check it out. The business model of the old B&M has changed, but we the consumer drive that change. Like Bitch said too many people go, drain the sales staff of their knowledge and the hit the webz to make the purchase. However Chuck hit the nail right on the bead for me, service after the sale is critical for me.
 
I haven't been to a physical audio store in years because during the period between 2000 and 2010 the stores I visited increasingly turned to "audiofool" logic, such as when I asked to hear a set of speakers they had on display the entire conversation went to amplifiers, cables, and power conditioners rather before the representative would make a single move to help me listen to the speakers. I get that they need to sell, but the impression they were giving me was that I wasn't a serious customer if I didn't have the right amps to prove that I was committed enough to this hobby to possibly ever be willing to buy the speakers I was asking to hear. Sure, they need to make money, but I could have turned into a big customer if they were friendly and tried to understand my interests and character rather than my commitment to audiophile nonsense.
 
Yeah, it was rampant in my area and even in respected shops in the San Francisco Bay Area and Dallas. So, I sorta gave up on all of them. Basically, it was as if the definition of a customer was an avid Stereophile reader who just followed their logic religiously.
 
Flint said:
Basically, it was as if the definition of a customer was an avid Stereophile reader who just followed their logic religiously.
Click to expand...

That is not surprising; this type of customer is the source of sales which have a higher potential for profit for the dealer. Surprisingly, the exact same situation existed in the 1950s (the "Golden Age of HiFi") - in fact the focus on upscale and custom installation might have been even more prevalent. HiFi back then was very much a pursuit for the rich man; it was always a man back then. There were of course routes for the more downscale working man, but the dealers really focused on the rich customer.

Today, many manufacturers are realizing that they can make more overall profit by making a few very expensive products verses many mainstream priced products. The manufacturers who do make less expensive gear generally seem to evolve their products to creep more upscale over time in price and target customer.
 
But I do get it, they are in the business to sell stuff at a profit. If most of the people walking in are just looking, learning, and later buying online, they cannot stay in business. So, focus on the type of customer who won't do that and carry products not generally available online, and they can survive by milking that niche market. It is a shame for people like me who enjoyed building a relationship with a store and directing my business to them and sending friends and acquaintances to them who I know would be treated well.
 
Flint said:
But I do get it, they are in the business to sell stuff at a profit. If most of the people walking in are just looking, learning, and later buying online, they cannot stay in business. So, focus on the type of customer who won't do that and carry products not generally available online, and they can survive by milking that niche market. It is a shame for people like me who enjoyed building a relationship with a store and directing my business to them and sending friends and acquaintances to them who I know would be treated well.
Click to expand...

Absolutely!!!
 
I read an article with an interesting perspective from a home theater dealer. The author says that he's had to learn which low/mid level products lead to further purchases of more high-end ones. He's had to adapt to selling those products with little or no profit so that he can later sell add-ons.
For example, he sells Sonos products which vary very little margin because he's learned that those that buy Sonos will often later buy more complete automation and control systems and/or higher end speakers.
 
Flint said:
But I do get it, they are in the business to sell stuff at a profit. If most of the people walking in are just looking, learning, and later buying online, they cannot stay in business. So, focus on the type of customer who won't do that and carry products not generally available online, and they can survive by milking that niche market. It is a shame for people like me who enjoyed building a relationship with a store and directing my business to them and sending friends and acquaintances to them who I know would be treated well.
Click to expand...

I agree with this as well. The problem is, customers like us, who are willing to pay a little more to keep a local contact around who will support us, are most definitely in the minority. While some products simply won't be found online, there's enough that are that most consumers will take that route. I may not be that broken up about somebody using Best Buy to cross shop with Amazon, but the smaller HT shops where we could A/B various speakers are dying (if not dead). When I bought my HT speakers (wow... I think that's 15 years ago now), the shop was willing to spend a fair amount of time with me as I compared what were fairly low end units. That shop is now gone (as is its sister shop), and the remaining ones just don't carry anything in that range. This shop's previous incarnation spent some time with me as I listened to the Energy Take system way back when... I didn't see anything anywhere close to that in stock. I'm sure I could go in there and they could find a way to show me some of the (relatively) lower end Paradigm Monitors, but might well be up a creek. I have little interest in whole home setups or home automation rigs, but that appears to be where the money is. I can't fault them for spending efforts there.

Life goes on, things change, and not always for the better. I figured you all could commiserate and sure enough, you've seen it too.
 
I went into a local A/V store in a nearby city awhile back and it was kind of a turn-off. They were big pushers are really expensive cables, pricey line conditioners and other nonsense. They almost visibly turned up their noses when I told them what gear I was using. There was very little interest in serving a hobbyist customer. It was pretty clear that the only customers they cared about were people with big custom install jobs. I won't be going back.
 
There are three local stores where I can go and enjoy hassle (and voodoo) free listening - which I very occasionally do during the week, mid-day, when store traffic is slow to non-existent.

One of the stores is part of a chain - but it's a franchise chain and really all about the quality of the staff.

The other two are owned by the same person (a friend of mine) and his staff have been in the business for decades (and many, like me, were part of Floyd Toole's listening panels at NRC.)

All of those stores do sell high-profit gear (like Bose) but hey! I can't fault them for needing to make enough money to stay open!

I've bought a number of things from them over the years and if I ever were buying say a pair of non-Koss speakers then they'd be in the running to sell me some.

Other than those there's maybe one or two more stores in the entire Ottawa area (many have closed) other than Best Buy. But those remaining stores are chock full of high-end avant-garde voodoo gear (like turntables and tube amps - cripes!) pushers.

:)

Jeff
 
I have actually had stores refuse to let me listen to a pair of speakers on the grounds that they did not think I could afford to buy them. I wish I were kidding, but I am not. One store told me that the speakers I wanted to hear were for "serious" customers after I answered their questions about my gear list. I was then dumped without ceremony in their "mid-fi" room and ignored. I generally have around $12,000 to $15,000 worth of gear in my system at any given time. While I acknowledge that this is a drop in the bucket compared to some, it still puts me in a very small demographic with regards to A/V spending. Do these guys really value their snobbery over their business? Do they really think they can afford to alienate the handful of people who are even INTERESTED in what they have to sell?
 
Haywood said:
Do these guys really value their snobbery over their business? Do they really think they can afford to alienate the handful of people who are even INTERESTED in what they have to sell?
Click to expand...

Clearly they do.
 
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