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View Poll Results: Should there be a Musical Instrument store in FV??
Uh, yeah!! 9 81.82%
What, are you kidding...NO!! 2 18.18%
Voters: 11. You may not vote on this poll

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Old 03-24-2013, 06:01 PM
 
20 posts, read 30,450 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Steam67 View Post
I wish you good luck and vision as you make this decision. I always prefer local music stores to chains for many, many reasons.
How well does that Music Go Round (I think it's in Cary) do? That place (the chain, I mean) is pretty dialed in for used gear and for tracking/moving inventory among its many locations.

The best local stores I know of (I'm a transplant from San Jose CA, so I'm thinking of Guitar Showcase and Starving Musician, if you want good examples) have strong lesson and setup/repair components as well as used/rental programs (be sure to include PA rentals for local bands). Some shops specialize in higher end new stuff (nothing crazy, but your typical line of Fender, Gibson, and other similar brands) and maintain a smaller consignment section for used gear, and others deal heavily in used. Some stores give you an option of how to configure the sale of your item (trade, consignment, or straight purchase for resale).

One way to keep pace with the times is having a web presence that maintains a real time inventory of all of your instrument stock.

You'll probably have to dedicate space for lessons, have a few instructors working and giving you a cut (for space, scheduling, payment processing, etc), and maybe an arrangement with a luthier/repair person who can handle anything beyond typical setup issues.

Ultimately, you have to decide whether the population density to support your business exists in Fuquay. You also have to determine whether you have the capital necessary to support your business and yourself for the months/years it may take to drive a profit.

I play the bass. For electric stuff, I've often shopped in local stores for things like strings, stands, cables, etc, but I tend to buy my instruments off Craig's List or other internet sources. I haven't needed it yet, but for setup issues that are beyond my meager skills to fix, I'll try to find a dedicated guitar guy.
For the upright, I buy most everything online, except instruments, and I won't have anyone but Bob Beerman touch it for repairs.
The internet, unfortunately for local guys, makes finding particular items really easy to get. That's a dynamic you'll have to consider as you decide what you want to be and to whom.

I'm probably stating the obvious above, as it sounds like you've been around a bit, but I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in just in case there's any idea that could help you out. Best of luck, and please keep the thread updated if you decide to proceed.
Thanks for your response!! Good thoughts above for sure. That Music Go Round in Cary seems to so alright, and John is a pretty good guy (he ran it last time I was in there). I know what you mean about the chain stores too, I love going to them just to see all the cool stuff, but when I am looking to buy I will usually go local or order online (depending on what I am looking for). Craigslist has been a god send for used gear for several years as well and is in my mind the biggest competition to opening a brick and mortar location. I currently have a "go to" repair guy as well when I can't handle it myself and I am pretty picky about who repairs my guitars. So, that has to be thought about as well if I plan to open a place.

I do worry about the population density in and around Fuquay as it is a pretty small community relatively speaking. I mean it's growing, but I would imagine that it would take a while for this business to "take off" if it ever did.

I thank you again for your response and will certainly keep you posted if I do move forward with the plan!
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Old 03-25-2013, 02:37 AM
 
Location: Downtown Durham, NC
915 posts, read 2,378,620 times
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Howdy!

I just want to make a recommendation about your poll. I'd rephrase the question to "Would you shop at a used music gear business in Fuquay" or similar. I think used music stores are great, but would I shop at one in Fuquay? Definitely not-- it's almost an hour away! Just some advice-- and it's worth everything you paid for it...
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Old 03-25-2013, 04:41 AM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by peperoberto View Post
Howdy!

I just want to make a recommendation about your poll. I'd rephrase the question to "Would you shop at a used music gear business in Fuquay" or similar. I think used music stores are great, but would I shop at one in Fuquay? Definitely not-- it's almost an hour away! Just some advice-- and it's worth everything you paid for it...
That's actually not a bad idea at all!! Now to figure out how to edit the question...
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Old 03-25-2013, 06:15 AM
 
3,050 posts, read 4,984,973 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by peperoberto View Post
Howdy!

I just want to make a recommendation about your poll. I'd rephrase the question to "Would you shop at a used music gear business in Fuquay" or similar. I think used music stores are great, but would I shop at one in Fuquay? Definitely not-- it's almost an hour away! Just some advice-- and it's worth everything you paid for it...
You'd have to be way, way on the far side of Durham to be an hour from Fuquay. Durham to Fuquay is only 30 minutes on the new toll road!
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Old 03-25-2013, 10:13 AM
 
6,297 posts, read 16,069,777 times
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You'll lose your shirt because the area is too small to support it.
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Old 03-25-2013, 10:26 AM
 
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Originally Posted by lovebrentwood View Post
You'll lose your shirt because the area is too small to support it.
Thanks for the response!! I was wondering if you thought the new hill village shopping center might be a better/more sustainable locale?
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Old 03-25-2013, 12:15 PM
 
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Music Go Round in Cary is gone. I think it's been gone for a while. There is a music shop in Crossroads now, but I think they mostly specialize in band equipment for school kids.

Just being able to provide basic repairs and setup beats every pawn shop I've ever been in. They can't even be bothered ot string a guitar they are trying to sell, even if they also sell strings. Something as simple as putting some fresh, $5 strings on a used guitar in a pawn shop would help. But I don't know many that will do that. It would be great to be able to do intonation, and other basic setups as well. But as a startup, you won't be able to afford a staff of 5 or 6 people. You'll probably be doing it all yourself in the beginning, at least i would.

Good luck, I hope you do it and make it work.
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Old 03-25-2013, 05:53 PM
 
Location: Cary, NC
211 posts, read 301,171 times
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I think it's a great idea. There is a paucity of musical instrument stores in this area. The problem with craigslist is if you want to do any comparison shopping you'll be yanked from one end of the Triangle to the other. Craigslist could be a source for you, if you have the time, to put together a decent collection of equipment for sale/rent.

You could consider add-ons like equipment rental, demo recording studio, DAW tutoring, instrument customization, etc. Perhaps even facilitate a musicians social network. I don't know if I'd quit my job to start something like that, though. You really need only a garage's worth of space to begin with and could do it by appointment after-hours until you've established a customer base.

Good luck and keep us posted
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Old 03-25-2013, 08:04 PM
 
6,297 posts, read 16,069,777 times
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I think what you said in your original post is very telling:

Quote:
I mean, I have seen the demise of two music stores in Fuquay-Varina
You need to do a lot of analysis before investing in a retail shop of your own. So many questions...

Why did those two stores fail? One closed here, too, that has been here for decades, I don't know the details. But certainly the economy must have something to do with it.

If business was good, wouldn't the two stores in FV still be open?

Your target audience is the same.

Who IS your target audience?

What percentage of people in FV are into music?

Where do they shop now?

Who handles high school needs now?

It would be tough to run a one-person shop and to give the customized service you want to give, I would think.

Even if FB is half an hour from Durham, the perception is that it's far, far away. How will you change that perception? (I'm not sure you could -- you'd be too busy running the shop yourself.)

I think this is great advice by athithi:

Quote:
I don't know if I'd quit my job to start something like that, though. You really need only a garage's worth of space to begin with and could do it by appointment after-hours until you've established a customer base.
Good luck!
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Old 03-26-2013, 06:11 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lovebrentwood View Post
I think what you said in your original post is very telling:



You need to do a lot of analysis before investing in a retail shop of your own. So many questions...

Why did those two stores fail? One closed here, too, that has been here for decades, I don't know the details. But certainly the economy must have something to do with it.

If business was good, wouldn't the two stores in FV still be open?

Your target audience is the same.

Who IS your target audience?

What percentage of people in FV are into music?

Where do they shop now?

Who handles high school needs now?

It would be tough to run a one-person shop and to give the customized service you want to give, I would think.

Even if FB is half an hour from Durham, the perception is that it's far, far away. How will you change that perception? (I'm not sure you could -- you'd be too busy running the shop yourself.)

I think this is great advice by athithi:



Good luck!
Hey, Thank you for the response and the contemplative line of questioning. I thought I would try to answer them to best of my ability while trying to make my case as though you were a potential investor. These are really good questions to ask anyone going into any sort of business, so again thank you! Oh and, the store you mention in your area I believe might be Burrage Music, which in my opinion is so sad because they provided such great service to the local schools and other budding musicians. It is sad to see them go, but it does open up the market share a little more.

Why did those two stores fail? Without knowing the specific details behind why each store closed, I can only venture to guess that they did not pull in enough traffic. One store had a decent selection of new items, but in limited brands and catered to a pretty specific crowd. They also did not do enough outreach in my humble opinion. The second store had much less in the way of selection and did not offer really anything out side of a few guitars and amps. Also, the aesthetics of this store were horrible. Dimly lit, not very well kept, it just did not scream "Come in here and shop!!" This store did nothing in the way of trying to draw in customers either. Had they come in, they would have been treated very well, but probably would not have found what they needed.

If business was good, wouldn't the two stores in FV still be open? I think this is a fair question, but should be countered with a qualification, "They would if they offered what the people wanted and let people know that they existed." FV and Holly Springs are brimming with middle to upper-middle class people with kids and being able to offer anything from the very beginner gear to intermediate and even some pro-gear along with making sure that every single person in that area knows the place exists could be a winning formula that neither of the previous two stores took advantage of.

Your target audience is the same. - For the most part, yes this is correct. I would hope to broaden my audience by offering more than either of the two last attempts did.

Who IS your target audience? - There are several facets to what I really want to do, so the audience will vary. Let me list quickly the main points of what I would want to offer:

- Used gear (Guitars, amps, pedals, drums, keys, interfaces, other instruments)
- New gear (limited to maybe a line or two for instruments **mainly guitar and amp, and accessories **for instrument and sheet music)
- Rentals (more geared towards school bands, and PA systems for bands)
- Setup and repair (some basic repairs in house and have connections for external help with bigger repairs)
- Studio time (a small, modest demo recording studio that could be rented by the hour)
- Lessons (This would be done by myself and I would also rent space to others wishing to bring students in)

So, the target would really be anyone interested in music or gear from the ages of 4-adult.

What percentage of people in FV are into music? Now, this is the key question that I do not have a total answer to. However, I think that a well equipped and properly marketed store would reach a bit beyond FV.

Where do they shop now? I would imagine a good market share goes to Craigslist, and some drive out to Raleigh to shop the stores out there. The school crowd probably hits the Music and Arts center in Cary for its selection in school band equipment.

Who handles high school needs now? With Burrage out of the picture, I bet the Music and Arts Center picked up a good bit of business, otherwise there are shops out in Raleigh providing this service.

It would be tough to run a one-person shop and to give the customized service you want to give, I would think. - I totally agree with this statement, which is why I have to work out a partnership of some sort. I hope to find someone who is as zealous about providing this service to the area as I am.

Even if FV is half an hour from Durham, the perception is that it's far, far away. How will you change that perception? (I'm not sure you could -- you'd be too busy running the shop yourself.) - Yes, it is far and there are shops between Durham and FV that many might stop at before ever coming that far. However, word of mouth travels and advertises better and many other forms of media. I think I will be able to provide a service worthy of a 30 minute drive!!

Thank you again for asking these questions and I will continue to ponder them as I try to move through this.
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