Gibson Guitars face bankruptsy

[Igottago]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

I realize that the younger generation loves it's hip-hop but I find the majority of it trash. I'm not an "oldies" guy as I listen to a lot of current rock/metal and simply prefer real musicians playing instruments.

Me too. I just don't think this is exactly the most exciting era of that music right now, especially in the mainstream. There's no Kendrick Lamar equivalent in rock music at the moment, the genre just looks old and stale in comparison, so I see why younger people are looking elsewhere.

[troutman]

I think there is just as many guitar bands as ever (maybe more than ever). But, they are not getting heard on commercial radio.

Many more women are playing guitar too, compared to the past. Maybe that is where we will find the next influential guitar heroes - ex. St. Vincent, Ex Hex, Sleater-Kinney.

[Hack&Lube]

I brought this up in the guitar thread. https://forum.calgarypuck.com/showthread.php?t=166908

Many people think it's a combination of several factors.

1. Gibson spent too much money acquiring other companies in an attempt to diversify from guitars. They purchased the home audio equipment and entertainment brands from Phillips, TEAC, Onkyo, Pioneer, Cerwin Vega, Stanton, KRK, Baldwin Piano, and Cakewalk.

2. Gibson spent too much money on properties in Nashville

3. Guitar as a whole has been trending downward in terms of usage in pop music and popularity among younger generations. It's the same issue as Harley Davison where they are not correctly finding a target market among millenials in the electronic music and R&B era

4. Gibson is overpriced and has lost quality

5. Crazy CEO. The CEO is totally nuts. You can read about Henry E. Juszkiewicz online

[Northendzone]

I can’t help but wonder if the popularity of the air guitar has something to do with this.

[Regular_John]

Yeah guitar sales are down across the board, heck just here in Alberta Axe Music is being acquired by Long & McQuade, and this after they announced the closure of the Calgary store last year.

But in addition to declining guitar sales Gibson has done some monumentally dumb things in the last 5-10 years. Robot tuners, price increases... picking fights with the US government over wood imports.

As other's have said the Gibson name will live on... but I wouldn't mind picking up an SG or another Les Paul on the cheap in the meantime

[Hanna Sniper]

You can't look at guitar sales in regards to the whole " rock guitar is dead"

The truth guitars are produced in such mass amounts and every year the total guitars can oversaturate the market. Guitars are not a throwaway item that you upgrade to the next model is released. You own it and play it for 20+ plus years and even pass it down to the next generation.

I've finally come to the realization that I most likely have bought my last new guitar. It just doesn't make sense, I was forced to this conclusion after my favorite line of guitars was discontinued for a new fresher marketing play. The simple truth is why to spend $2199 on a new guitar that will have a resell of $1400. Why take the $800 loss, when you can just buy what you want used for $1400 and if you don't bond with it you can pretty much sell it back at the same price and not take a loss.

The guitar manufactures are the ones at fault for this after years and years of pushing these "Relic" guitars down the consumer's thoughts. They made the used guitar look a sought after thing and it only takes time before people realize that you can buy a "Relic" guitar full price or buy relic guitar half price

As for Gibson, their brand name is too strong, it will survive once taken over and forced to change their ways

[Regular_John]

Originally Posted by Igottago

Me too. I just don't think this is exactly the most exciting era of that music right now, especially in the mainstream. There's no Kendrick Lamar equivalent in rock music at the moment, the genre just looks old and stale in comparison, so I see why younger people are looking elsewhere.

Yeah even as a life long fan of rock music I'm not particularly enthused by the current crop of rock/metal music being released. Recent releases by bands I love (Mastodon, Japandroids, Arcade Fire) have been pretty under whelming.

Meanwhile we've got Frank Ocean & Kendrick Lamar firing on all cylinders and continuing to raise the bar on popular music.

[rotten42]

Their pricing is totally out of wack. They keep trying to push new versions of old guitars and somehow think people will pay outrageous prices for them.

http://www.gibson.com/Products/Elect...%A2&ModelYear=

And then they insult their customers by releasing this:

http://www.gibson.com/Products/Elect...-Les-Paul.aspx

[rotten42]

Let this one sink in!

[PsYcNeT]

Being a robot guitar, it just plays B, E, A, D chords on a loop.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by jaydorn

Yeah guitar sales are down across the board, heck just here in Alberta Axe Music is being acquired by Long & McQuade, and this after they announced the closure of the Calgary store last year.

But in addition to declining guitar sales Gibson has done some monumentally dumb things in the last 5-10 years. Robot tuners, price increases... picking fights with the US government over wood imports.

As other's have said the Gibson name will live on... but I wouldn't mind picking up an SG or another Les Paul on the cheap in the meantime

Damn, isn't that Trad's store?

I always liked the vibe of Axe more than L&M. Over the years I've bought keyboards, basses, and even turntable needles there. I liked their auction thing.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by rotten42

Their pricing is totally out of wack. They keep trying to push new versions of old guitars and somehow think people will pay outrageous prices for them.

The keep putting out crappy $2000+ guitars to a target demographic (boomers and up) that is going to die off.

Gibson also got caught by the government for importing illegal wood that was possibly illegally harvested, etc. They got it confiscated and hit with a huge fine.

Gibson ended up paying and getting some of the wood back and then they blamed Obama and released a protest line of guitars at crazy prices to appeal to the conservative consumers.

[Regular_John]

Originally Posted by rotten42

Their pricing is totally out of wack. They keep trying to push new versions of old guitars and somehow think people will pay outrageous prices for them.

http://www.gibson.com/Products/Elect...%A2&ModelYear=

And then they insult their customers by releasing this:

http://www.gibson.com/Products/Elect...-Les-Paul.aspx

They've also fallen into the same trap Apple did in the late 90's of trying to be everything to everyone and offering just too many models for sale.

If you omit Epiphone & the Custom shop lines, their base 2018 lineup still contains 27 Les Paul models to choose from. Which just plain insane, it's gotta be a nightmare to manage internally, and god have mercy on the shops trying to choose what to stock.

Even just as a consumer it leads option paralysis... "Do I want humbuckers? binding? Dot inlays? Satin or Glossy finish? Chambered weight relief? Wait what are the original 59 specs Eric Clapton used again?"

[Matata]

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

5. Crazy CEO. The CEO is totally nuts. You can read about Henry E. Juszkiewicz online

I looked him up, it is indeed horrifying, it's like a textbook example of how micro-managing dick heads can implode a company: http://gawker.com/gibson-guitar-ceo-...-da-1661598680

Here's a bunch of employees dumping on him and the work culture he created:https://www.glassdoor.ca/Reviews/Gib...yRedirect=true

[Nage Waza]

I recently bought a new guitar (and amp). As a metal fan, I didn't event consider a Gibson. I wound up with a Shecter, but had the choice of three or four other brands that really focus on metal.

[nfotiu]

It doesn't get a lot of mention in this thread but it seems like acoustic guitars and other acoustic string instruments are far more trendy these days. In my part of the country, the craft beer and beverage scene has completely taken over and all the breweries/cideries/distilleries/wineries are packed with both hipsters and old people like me. A few will have dj's spinning and hip hop music, but 90% of them have a band playing some combination of acoustic instruments. They are often young, hipster looking bands too.

It seems the only work a drum/electric guitar based band is getting work is playing covers at the cougar bars.

Artists like Courtney Barrett and Kurt Vile also seems pretty popular in the indie music scene.

It just seems electric guitar based rock ran its course and got boring. That's fine by me and I'm sure it will see a comeback sooner or later.

[troutman]

Gibson, Iconic Guitar Company, Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection

http://variety.com/2018/biz/news/gib...on-1202793510/

“Gibson will emerge from Chapter 11 with working capital financing, materially less debt, and a leaner and stronger musical instruments-focused platform that will allow the Company and all of its employees, vendors, customers and other critical stakeholders to succeed,” the announcement reads.

[ernie]

Did the Memphis factory tour a month or so ago (some of the custom guitars they have in the first hallway of that tour are simply incredible...the ES-335 Red Skull is jaw dropping in person). Tour guide was pretty vocal about how stupid the CEO is. They built the massive Memphis facility complete with a venue that has no distinguishing feature from the other venues in the area. It was a vanity project. They already knew that factory was shutting down and moving to a another building more suitable for the size of the operation.

There is no doubt they put a lot of care into the guitars they make. There is also no doubt they are severely overpriced. Add in the fact that the lower end guitar market making some pretty significant strides in quality (no matter where they are built).

Put all that together and you have a recipe for bankruptcy....

[blankall]

Originally Posted by rotten42

Their pricing is totally out of wack. They keep trying to push new versions of old guitars and somehow think people will pay outrageous prices for them.

http://www.gibson.com/Products/Elect...%A2&ModelYear=

And then they insult their customers by releasing this:

http://www.gibson.com/Products/Elect...-Les-Paul.aspx

Their pricing is definitely driving away customers.

If you want to attract youth customers, you need fancy looking guitars with trendy designs.

They price the "studio versions" somewhat reasonably, but then charge an extra $1000 dollars for the exact same guitar with a painted finish on top, which probably cost them at most $100 to add. Business and retail models have changed. People expect the cool add ons and customizations as a matter of course.

They've done that exact same thing with that Krueger guitar too, charging around $1000 extra, just because it has Krueger's name on it. Krueger has a lot of fans, and people will pay for his guitar, but that extra gouging is just so far out of wack. Many of Krueger's fans are going to be compromised in their ability to work, due to generations of inbreeding, where are they supposed to come up with that kind of scratch?

[btimbit]

Yeah the insane pricing is definitely an issue. I bought one Gibson then supplemented my collection with a bunch of epiphones and other budget brands I customize and upgrade. The cost is just too darn much, even though it's an amazing sounding piece of art, I'd never buy another one unless I was a professional musician