Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
At The Back => Time Out => Topic started by: hunter on September 20, 2008, 11:53:07 AM
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I mean wouldn't it be nice to deal with the stuff you love? I think about it quite often, but then come the doubts, cost of dead stock, the slavery deals of manufacturers (you wanna have stock of that nice guitar, you gotta take also the lemons, etc.), the dudes that annoy you for hours with the latest thrash riffs and then go off and buy on ebay, low margins, high rent costs, shop lifters/theft, etc.
But still, wouldn't it be nice to make some people happy with nice guitars, amps and stuff?
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Nearly gave up job I have for a job in a guitar shop...not a bad wage either
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Yep, it would be nice :)
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Yes, but would you really SELL the guitars?? :lol:
I believe some guys here would have troubles to sell them :D
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No I don'tthink it would be for me.
Why? Well, as some of you know, I own rather a lot of guitars :) The downside to having such a large collection is that I'm forever changing strings, cleaning/polishing, adjusting actions etc to keep them all in playable condition. Having to do that for a shop that may have hundreds of guitars in stock would be torture.
IMO it's a myth that shop staff spend their day sitting around playing gorgeous guitars - it's bloody hard work & might take away much of the joy I get from playing my own instruments...
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I'd be happy to sell guitars that weren't mine!
Plus you get first dibs on the good ones that come in ;)
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I have a feeling that, like most things, it would become "just a job" after a while. Not sure it would suit me, anyway, to have to deal with people all day. I'm not very good with people...
If I had my time over, I think I would have had a go at building guitars for a living. I get the impression that it's a career which gives job satisfaction rather than financial rewards, though.
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I ran a guitar shop for about 3 years in my early 20's. It was fun in that you got to try everything and you could play whenever you wanted, as well as getting first dibs on second hand gear. However it was long periods of boredom when the shop was empty and everything was all set up, combined with frantic activity when the shop was full. You also have to deal with the public and some of them are shites. It would be a lot less hours than my job now, and I wouldn't be on call 24/7 like now - but would I go back to it? Only if I could be 22 again 8)
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yeah, but then i think of all the negatives which have been mentioned in this thread. the current financial climate would make it a pretty bad time to start one too, i'd have thought, in addition to all the other problems.
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I wouldn't own and operate it, I don't have financial smarts. But I'd like to try working in one for awhile.
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Maybe if you had a shop with only like 1,500 GBP + instruments. No cheap stuff or whatsoever. That would limit the customers to the more serious and passionate ones I suppose. Plus you could get a great relationship with custom builders and the PRSes and Gibson and Fender Custom Shops.
But then maybe you'd have huge stock cost and not enough cash turnover ...
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It's hard to go from a good regular wage to a low eratic one by choice.
I had a well paid 'career' job but developed a heart problem.
I'd been unable to work since Feb but have now almost recovered
I now work at a guitar school 3 days a week.
The pay is low but I've never enjoyed a job as much as this. I love going to work and often get up early just to go in to work early. It feels like a holiday
Sadly though a time will come to go back to the other career.
But it's made me realise, I could have just done this for a break for a year or so and than gone back to the less enjoyable but better paid stuff.
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WOrld Guitars currently do what you suggest there Hunter. They must have had HUGE start up costs.
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Maybe if you had a shop with only like 1,500 GBP + instruments. No cheap stuff or whatsoever. That would limit the customers to the more serious and passionate ones I suppose. Plus you could get a great relationship with custom builders and the PRSes and Gibson and Fender Custom Shops.
But then maybe you'd have huge stock cost and not enough cash turnover ...
Yeah, or it would limit your clients to doctors and lawyers who play one chord a month. I think that'd be more frustrating for me than the 13-year-old thrashers.
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Zimbloth over at SS.org just started up what could be described as a dream shop...
http://axepalace.com/
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I have a feeling that, like most things, it would become "just a job" after a while. Not sure it would suit me, anyway, to have to deal with people all day. I'm not very good with people...
If I had my time over, I think I would have had a go at building guitars for a living. I get the impression that it's a career which gives job satisfaction rather than financial rewards, though.
I agree.
I think that I'd like to run a rehearsal studio. If money was no particular object I'd so that, not be too bothered about margins, get loads of local bands through the doors. Maybe sell strings on the side, maybe some guitars.
It's my "lottery" job - something to get me out of the house.
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my lottery job would be doing sweet f.a.... though i guess to have any chance of winning i'd need to start playing it...
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I have a feeling that, like most things, it would become "just a job" after a while. Not sure it would suit me, anyway, to have to deal with people all day. I'm not very good with people...
If I had my time over, I think I would have had a go at building guitars for a living. I get the impression that it's a career which gives job satisfaction rather than financial rewards, though.
Job satisfaction > financial rewards any day of the week.
For me, anyway!
Roo
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Think of all the places going out of business very tough to make any money - also in the UK so much of the stuff goes via Fender or Rosetti that they have you screwed to the wall.
You'd probably be better off repairing and setting up guitars.. But even then it is tough - my local guitar repairer guy does not even turn over enough to worry the VAT man! That is turn over, not what he takes home!
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I would rather start up a rehearsal room, an excuse to have loads of cool gear around.
A wall of Bogner cabs :D
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A friend of mine is a session guy, and a few years ago he had some huge (2-5 million) jobs lined up. We decided we would open the world's best music shop. It would be awesome, we'd have huge stock, tons of boutique stuff, our own custom shop, as well as studio space and a music bar. We planned out loads and even started scoping out buildings.
however, all the gigs fell through :(
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I have a feeling that, like most things, it would become "just a job" after a while. Not sure it would suit me, anyway, to have to deal with people all day. I'm not very good with people...
If I had my time over, I think I would have had a go at building guitars for a living. I get the impression that it's a career which gives job satisfaction rather than financial rewards, though.
I agree.
I think that I'd like to run a rehearsal studio. If money was no particular object I'd so that, not be too bothered about margins, get loads of local bands through the doors. Maybe sell strings on the side, maybe some guitars.
It's my "lottery" job - something to get me out of the house.
Yes! However, the rehearsal studio would have to be attached to a recording studio and a guitar shop. If this whole endeavor had a bar so much the better. The bar would have a fair size stage to let the local bands battle, and to showcase any bands good enough to sign on your own label. The Lotto label :lol: :lol: :lol:
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me and a mate were seriously considering opening a rehearsal studio back around 2001/2002. got a business plan together etc... but we couldn't get any sort of small-business funding to help us get off the ground and we didn't want to go the bank loan route.
the whole thing fell flat on it's arse. we ended up getting a £3000 loan and bought a van, PA, lighting rig and other associated stuff to start up a mobile PA-hire. did well for ourselves for around two or three years too. it was also cool to have that stuff available for our band as well.
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Job satisfaction > financial rewards any day of the week.
For me, anyway!
Roo
Yes & no unfortunitely
If you have kids that usually ends up going out of the window :( I can't complain too much cos I didn't have to compromise till I was 30
I can't wait till retirement, so I can then do something that actually interests me
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I work in a guitar shop 2 days a week, I also teach guitar and repair guitars.
along with playing gigs etc..
my bread and butter.