Taylor's loss is The Podium's gain

[M19]

Startling news that Taylor cancelled Guitar Rodeo's distributorship. No warning, no explanation.

Not skipping a beat, Jim and Zim take the new Podium into the premium guitar space: http://www.guitarrodeo.com/blog/2013/07/the-podium

I think I'm gonna be visiting a LOT more often!

[shorty]

What a shame!! Jim has been a banner dealer for the Taylor brand...Seems almost not fair!  I wish Jim all the best and will continue to support this kind businessman and all his current and future endeavors 

[terrypl]

What?! I thought Guitar Rodeo was one of the top Taylor sellers. What happened?

[M19]

What?! I thought Guitar Rodeo was one of the top Taylor sellers. What happened?

I think you'd have to ask Taylor that. It will be instructive to see if the list of "deep discounters" grows shorter and shorter (my personal suspicion).

[e8n]

Well I will say that I bought my last Taylor. 

While Jim is an internet dealer he is also my local dealer.  I've spent hours in his shop and bought a lot of Taylor's from him.   These will be the last.  Sad day.

-Dave

[PureTone]

Since the Podium and Taylor parted ways before the merger, this is not a complete surprise (unlike the dealer status being withdrawn from My Favorite Guitars).

I don't quite understand what 'Preferred Online Dealer' status means.
http://www.taylorguitars.com/dealers/online
It used to be that a shop could not advertise that they were a Taylor dealer, no mention could be made in a phone book ad or on their website, much less put product up with a 'Shopping Cart' format. One had to look at Taylor's website and call the store to see if the guitar they were looking for was in stock. In order to be a dealer, the store had to be 'brick-and-mortar' and maintain their inventory.

It looks like Taylor's marketing structure has been aligning more with other large manufacturers, whereas before they did not sponsor artists or give away products in contests. It would be expected that there would be some changes, as the current VP of Sales came from another large guitar company. Let's just hope that the quality control does not go down a similar route as well.

As for the discount percentage, there are other companies that have successfully set the price levels, but savvy customers will always be able to find where they feel they are getting the most per dollar spent. If the idea is bring the actual sales price up, it's a little late for that because the 'standard' seems to have been set and dealers have set up their pricing structure to where they feel they need to be in order to be competitive. Playing games with MAP is always an option, as there are other guitar manufacturers whose MAP prices are the same percentage off as the 'deep discount' ones. Lets hope that it's not another instance of the 'tail wagging the dog' because when that happened with a string manufacturer, the tail  'won'.

I doubt that any kind of 'petition' would produce any results, as if the company feels that they no longer want a dealer to represent their product that is their prerogative.
Still, 'It's just business.' seems a little harsh because I'm sure there are a good number of people that have supported stores like these for very good reasons and it seems like the rug is being pulled out from under them.

[scwuit]

Just switched back to a Taylor with a purchase from My Favorite Guitars in Naples Fl.  The next day he was no longer a Taylor dealer either.  I like the 522 12 fret but not sure I understand the business direction Taylor is following. 

[M19]

Since the Podium and Taylor parted ways before the merger, this is not a complete surprise (unlike the dealer status being withdrawn from My Favorite Guitars).

Well, The Podium dropped Taylor well before any transaction was even in it's infancy. If you're suggesting that Taylor then dropped Guitar Rodeo (before the transaction was finalized) in response, that seems far fetched to me. I think they were independent events. I think bringing on the new  guy (from Gibson, right?) was the triggering event.

[PureTone]

From this, it sounds like Guitar Rodeo is becoming 'the Podium'.
http://www.guitarrodeo.com/blog/2013/07/the-podium
The first banner on the website marquee is this.
http://www.guitarrodeo.com/media/wysiwyg/Podium_logo_slider.jpg
Whether or not the relationship dissolving between Taylor and the Podium have anything to do with Guitar Rodeo not being included in Taylor's online marketing plan is coincidental or not means very little. The fact is that Guitar Rodeo will no longer continue to carry Taylor and if the business takes on the name of the company that is being merged with, then it only makes sense that the line would be dropped.

[Captain Jim]

Wow.  Just, wow.  I bought my 814ce from Jim and James at Guitar Rodeo; easy and professional.  I love my Taylors and am sorry to hear that GR and Taylor will no longer be working together.   

Captain Jim

[oatordeal]

Sad news indeed. I was planning to purchase my second Taylor from Jim once again.

[sitedrifter]

Wow this almost sounds like what Chrysler did to thousands of dealers in 2008. They yanked the franchise from some of the best customer service based dealers around!


Sorry to see GR lose it's dealership rank with Taylor and the same thing goes for MFG.  I wonder if the super retailers (online) have anything to do with this?

[Herb Hunter]

Well I will say that I bought my last Taylor. 

While Jim is an internet dealer he is also my local dealer.  I've spent hours in his shop and bought a lot of Taylor's from him.   These will be the last.  Sad day.

-Dave

I don’t choose the guitars I buy based on the the brand’s internet sales policy or dealership rules. I choose guitars based on quality, tone, playability and, lastly, esthetics. As long as Taylor makes quality guitars whose tone and playability suit me, I will buy Taylors. Taylor’s environmental policy, their efforts to ensure wood sustainability, their customer service and their regard for their employees make choosing Taylors all the more easy for me.


Nevertheless, considering Guitar Rodeo’s reputation, that it has ceased to be a Taylor dealer is a shame but it is important to remember we don’t know everything about the story. I am reminded of when Taylor decided to disallow the use of their name for an independent forum. For several years, all I ever heard was the forum’s side of the story and when I finally learned what really happened, I was stunned.

[e8n]

I don’t choose the guitars I buy based on the the brand’s internet sales policy or dealership rules. I choose guitars based on quality, tone, playability and, lastly, esthetics. As long as Taylor makes quality guitars whose tone and playability suit me, I will buy Taylors. Taylor’s environmental policy, their efforts to ensure wood sustainability, their customer service and their regard for their employees make choosing Taylors all the more easy for me.


Nevertheless, considering Guitar Rodeo’s reputation, that it has ceased to be a Taylor dealer is a shame but it is important to remember we don’t know everything about the story. I am reminded of when Taylor decided to disallow the use of their name for an independent forum. For several years, all I ever heard was the forum’s side of the story and when I finally learned what really happened, I was stunned.

Herb,

For the most part I agree.  It's about the guitar and the quality of the guitar.  Its also about the dealer that sells you the guitar, their policies and how they care for their customers.  Jim has always been outstanding with this.  I guess it's a package deal, which is what I'm guessing is what Taylor is trying to get to.  I believe they don't see guitars being sold on the internet at internet prices as befitting to what they want their reputation to be.  They want storefronts and less discounts so that they are less of a commodity.  They want a dealer to take care of their customers and they don't perceive the internet deals as being that either.

That said, Jim is also that storefront shop to many of us in the area.  Frankly I have no idea where there is another Taylor dealer near me (I'm sure there is).  Most shops here "used to be" Taylor dealers but got pushed out when Taylor demanded huge inventories (for a fairly small shop) of their products.

Taylor makes nice guitars.  I've always enjoyed mine and will continue to do so (that includes 4-5 BTOs that I've bought).  When I go to look for another guitar they won't be on my list because they have become inaccessable to me or at the very least, much less accessable and far less affordable. 

It all may sound petty but Taylor has made decisions about their business model and consumers will need to make decisions about how they feel about that business model and if it fits into their plans.  My guess is that this will hurt them a lot for a long time as these online folks moved a lot of guitars for them and made a lot of people Taylor fans at an affordable price.

-Dave

[M19]

Well I will say that I bought my last Taylor. 

While Jim is an internet dealer he is also my local dealer.  I've spent hours in his shop and bought a lot of Taylor's from him.   These will be the last.  Sad day.

-Dave

I don’t choose the guitars I buy based on the the brand’s internet sales policy or dealership rules. I choose guitars based on quality, tone, playability and, lastly, esthetics. As long as Taylor makes quality guitars whose tone and playability suit me, I will buy Taylors. Taylor’s environmental policy, their efforts to ensure wood sustainability, their customer service and their regard for their employees make choosing Taylors all the more easy for me.

You yourself have listed several non-guitar factors relating to how you feel about Taylor, and Dave has mentioned several others. It's not totally just about the guitar, but everyone's "other factors" are different. For those of us who know Jim personally, this "other factor" isn't shared by those who don't. That's all.