Are Sales Down

A product sale depends on the demand (or interest) for a specific product and its asking price. For example. my MSB Premier DAC sold in 2 hours after it was posted for its asking price

And, yes, I have one item that has been listed for 5+ months. I substantially lowered the price and still no sale. It is listed for a third of its asking price and still has not sold. Obviously, no demand for this product meaning no sale.

People still spooked from talk about pending recession. Not going to make significant purchase if you think you may be unemployed soon.

One would think the summer is a seasonally weak time for demand & the holidays are prime time.  Remember the old stock market adage, "There is a price for every trade."

There seem to be sales on ebay that move, where pricing is reasonable. At brick-and-mortar shops, my take is that they are down. Just looking at the market, even among the survivors of the long term decline in the numbers of audio shops, the market trend seems to be toward servicing whole-home automation installations and less of the traditional audiophile market which seems to be shrinking. The online market seems to be hot, but those aren't the traditional audiophile buyers, many more focused on new entrants to the market buying headphone and desktop component systems. I would like to be optimistic that some of those will gravitate toward  the higher end market in time as their earnings and resources allow, but who knows. The independents near me have a smattering of audiophile gear, Rega integrateds, Prima Luna, and a Krell here and there. but most can't afford to floorplan beyond a few brands.

Look at the age of attendees at the Hi Fi audio shows......alot of gray hairs, not alot of people under 50.