Klarinet Archive - Posting 000103.txt from 1998/05

From: Jack Kissinger <kissingerjn@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: [kl] Price coyness
Date: Mon, 4 May 1998 10:06:55 -0400

I wouldn't be too quick to blame WW&BW for this policy. If you look in
Fred Weiner and the other mail order catalogs, I think you will find
exactlyvthe same thing. I suspect that Boosey and Yamaha are the real
culprits and would not be at all surprised to find, as part of their
distributorship agreements, a clause stipulating that the "real"
(discounted) price of at least some defined group of clarinets not be
advertised publicly. The purpose may be to protect other distributors
who do not (cannot afford to?) discount significantly or to enhance the
image of the instrument (discounted? our instruments? marketing hype?
us?). I've never quite understood the reasoning. Note too that if you
look through these catalogs, you will never find new Selmer instruments
even mentioned, let alone priced, yet all the mail-order places carry
Selmer. Again, I believe this is a restriction imposed by Selmer in the
distributorship agreement though I REALLY don't understand why the
company would deny its distributors the right to tell the public that
they at least carry the company's instruments. Maybe this is why fewer
people seem to play Selmer professional clarinets these days.

Finally, it has been pointed out recently in other messages that
Leblanc's stature has grown most rapidly in recent years. Isn't it
interesting that their prices generally are disclosed?

I don't understand the "price coyness" either, though I believe it to be
the manufacturers rather than the distributors who are responsible.

Best regards,
Jack Kissinger
St. Louis

Kenneth Wolman wrote:
>
> I used to do a lot of semipro photography years ago and I LOATHED going
> through advertisements for equipment where someone said "CALL!" in lieu of
> a price. If I wanted to CALL, I'd CALL rather than be subjected to some
> salesman's hard sell tactics on the phone. WW&BW does this kind of thing
> with both Buffet and Yamaha clarinets. I cannot for the life of me
> understand the objective of price coyness. If they're afraid of being
> undercut by a competitor, what is to stop someone from the competition from
> actually calling up and getting a price on a horn or two?
>
> Ken
>
> Kenneth Wolman Information Technology Morgan Stanley Inc.

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