First year I opened I took on a line that had two cd players only, one was $600 at retail, the other was $900. We became the Western Canadian dealer of the year for Eclipse that year. Not bad for not knowing the line at all or the distributor but for trusting a long time rep / friend Bob McNeil. 9 years later I am responsible for alot of brand awareness of this line here on Vancouver Island, all done by word of mouth and good customer service.

 

People that are shopping for brand name equipment have usually done some research or have bought that brand before.
But I think for the most part - many consumers have no idea what they're looking for (as far as brands go anyway).
Take today for instance - guy comes in asks if I have Sony - we dont. He's looking for a CD player what has an auxilliary input - so I show him one that did - the name Sony never came up again - point being that they may come in looking for a brand name they are familiar with (who hasn't heard of Sony)but he ended up buying something else that I suggested.

The brand may help bring additional customers in - but once they're in the store - the salesperson is in control (or should be)- then you move them into your exclusive speaker and amplifier brands.

I think exclusives are really important - its the only way your going to make some good margins - gone are the days where you could make 35-37% margin on cd players (even with the likes of Eclipse).So,sure you have to share a brand with a competitor or two, but you have to make your money with your exclusives or your'e dead.


Just some thoughts..!!

 

Profit lines only work if someone comes into your store... you need National Lines to create traffic and legitimacy. You need a mix of both to survive.

 

Some of us remember Bob from the days that he and Wage Kitagawa were both at Alpine.