Could The Music Room biz model be duplicated? A second TMR?

Maybe the Audiopimp will rise from New Jersey. Or was in New York? That was a while ago.

@ejr1953  Here here. Naysayers gonna nay. Brick and mortar is in trouble, and TMR is proving a new mode for the hobby. Our country is enormous. One need only look at the options for cables, speakers, etc. to know there's capacity for one more TMR. 

I've done business with TMR and echo the positive things posted by others here.  I also agree that healthy competition benefits both the buyer and seller, so if another company in that space would come along, I'd say give them some consideration as well.

I've had very positive dealings with TMR. They were quick to resolve a minor issue with an amp i purchased from them and their pricing (with the expected retail markup) is reasonable, unlike Skifi. Skifi charge "we're close to Manhattan" sky high prices for gear that really isn't all that special. I think their customer base is the type that brags how much they spent with more equalling better.

A business in California? Forget it. Why would anyone want to pay for a ridiculously expensive lease on a warehouse full of junk(that's what it is outside of audio nuts) to a constantly shrinking customer base?

Add to that all the administrative/logistical cost to operate such a business, it would definitely be a labor of love and not a profitable one. 

Maybe if you owned the building, somehow you magically acquired a boatload of great used gear and a minimal staff who is knowledgeable and are financially independent, and are there just for the love of audio.

I purchased a  phono cartridge from TMR at a  great price. They have items that catch my attention now and then. You can also negotiate their listing prices too, which on the face is typically high.

TMR is a proven success. So, the odd person here or there who doesn't prefer them is not indicative of whether or not their idea is a good one; they are. Their testing and guarantee of the gear is a huge factor for me, and it's where they more than deserve their cut. Add to that their trial period and their professional shipping... This is why I'm pondering why another one might not be a good idea.

To each is own own...

"I don’t think there should be another TMR - one is too many."

I feel a good portion of the audience for the gear sold by the likes of TMR, Sky Fi, and others is very specific and purchasing from real business with real business polices can be comforting. This is especially true as some of the gear does get expensive. Even Audiogon could be considered a middle man as they are directly in-between a seller and a purchaser and will take a percentage of the sale. This is not a bad thing in either case.

The benefit is the store fronts they offer. For example, Sky Fi has a piece of gear I have lusted after for years - a Cello Audio Palette. Very expensive at just shy of 20k and very rare and hard to repair. I would rather work with a business on a purchase like this than just someone who says they have it and will send it out Tuesday and then "poof" they funds and the seller disappear.

Yes - I think there is a very solid place for these business and they seem to offer a wide variety of gear benefiting us all.

I'd prefer to have audiophiles sell gear amongst themselves rather than have a middleman.  The items sold by TMR could be a lot cheaper less fees/commission.  In essence, they are selling used gear for a commission. I haven't bought a single product from TMR as I haven't seen a value to date.  I don't think there should be another TMR - one is too many.

@theo East coast would be great. I didn't think they sold new P.S. Audio directly, but rather that the used gear that P.S. Audio gets from their generous trade in program is somehow channelled to TMR for resale. I read that, I believe, somewhere. There's a network of relationships between the two enterprises, including a supply of incoming gear.

Wow that's great!

Maybe TMR should open a second site on the east coast. They could increase their used inventory by being in a couple locations and save on shipping costs for those buying and selling. By the way they no longer carry PS Audio since PS decided to move everything in house and deal directly with their customers. 

@theo Don’t get me wrong -- I love TMR and will continue, happily, to do business with them.

I’m just thinking about this because we have a country with 330 million people and brick and mortar stores in audio are continuing to go under. There are other manufacturers besides ps audio that could benefit from a partner arrangement with a second TMR, too.

So, nothing against TMR and I wish them continued success. I’m just imagining that the country could be big enough either for another TMR or even another store like it.

But you and others raise a good point about whether the country could support two TMR. I suppose if we agreed that it couldn’t, then the industry is really in decline.

I like Echo Audio and the others, but the variety of TMR is exceptional. I'm just imagining that something like TMR was located in CA. The number of companies local to them would be enormous, and if a couple were large -- say, Schiit and Parasound -- there could be a synergy that works. Access to shipping and transportation, plus the scale of the CA economy...could be a winner.

Anyone remember Jeff's Sound Values. There have been others in the past. And there are others today, as has been pointed out.

audio classics Vestal NY has a lot of used gear as does Hawthorne in Seattle. but as a happy customer f all three, TMR is unique. Speaker shipped to  them is uneconomic on my last quote..but ya can’t always win….

i think TMR is > 15 employees now, doing something, many things right…

There is another one. Or was?I'm not sure if they are still doing business.https://skyfiaudio.com
I've been happy doing business with TMR a few times myself.

You should check out Echo Audio. Much smaller, but a similar business model. Lots of great used gear at prices that are hard to beat and great ethics. They have talked me out of buying something I was interested in more than once.

Having doing business a couple of times with TMR, they seem to have a very good business model. It would take a good amount of capital and a dedicated, intelligent staff to duplicate their success. IMHO.

Of course someone could open a version of their own, but is it needed. TMR is doing a good job with model they have. So far they seem to be doing business in a positive light as I really don’t see many negative comments about them. They are expanding their facility and have been taking on new product lines which gives the opportunity to trade in as well in addition to just selling your gear.
But yes, someone could try to start on their own, but would the audio market support 2 identical businesses. In my life I have seen Montgomery Ward succumb to Sears and now Sears is all but gone. WalMart and Amazon have hurt that market, so I would guess that 2 TMR business would shorten the life of both.