2. speakers
  3. 192369-135653

Starting my showroom again

 

Hello, audiophiles. I would like to get your honest feedback. Back in 2022, I had to close my business in Nashville owing to a series of unexpected occurrences (several deaths in the family, a rapid move to assist my mother-in-law, and a brain operation); all of this necessitated that I close the store in a matter of weeks. It was now a two-hour trek to Nashville. I worked as a glorified gate operator at a chemical company because that is all was available in our small town. I received an opportunity to become national sales director for an audio company, which would provide some income—not much, but enough to go back into the hifi business at the bottom level.

 

 

 

So now you know the incredibly brief version of the story. Here's the question: there is a little town about 30 minutes away that is booming and gaining more expensive retailers like Ulta and StarBucks. So here's the question.

 

Do you believe a small town like that might support an up-and-coming hifi business that sells receivers, speakers like PS Audio, KEF, and other manufacturers at a lower price point until the store can handle more expensive items? The closest "electronics store," Electronics Express, is nearly an hour and a half away. I have had an audio shop since 2003, beginning in Florida. Thoughts?

 

128x128nashvillehifi

Showing 1 response by devinplombier

devinplombier
399 posts
 

Here is my one-and-a-half cent

The hifi business is similar to the fashion business in many ways. Online Chinese own most of it. Prestige brands make fortunes overseas while their traditional former customers while their days in assisted-living facilities. The once-dominant middle market of department stores and specialty shops is as good as dead. The only segment that's still thriving, besides LVMH, is vintage and resale. 

I could see an opportunity for a small business that repairs / refurbs "parts & repair" gear bought for pennies on the dollar, sells it online, and figures out the challenge of packaging and shipping at a reasonable cost. Partnering with a good tech would be the differentiator and value add. Techs are thin on the gound to begin with and more often than not they're incompetent - hence the somewhat abundant supply of gear deemed unfixable.

Run the business from your respective garages. No overhead is key.

 

More to discover