Klarinet Archive - Posting 001084.txt from 2004/07

From: "Ken Wolman" <kwolman@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Feeling like Yamaha is one stupidly run company!
Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 08:29:52 -0400

Kevin Fay wrote:

> MAP = Minimum Advertised Price. It some circumstances, it's the "estimated
> retail price," better known as "list" or "sticker" price. What it means is
> simple - Yamaha won't allow catalog retailers to advertise a price lower
> than the this price.

Okay, I'm a bit slow this morning so help me out here. Is Yamaha the
only maker among the "bigs" to do something like this? I think it's
only recently that Selmer allowed their instruments to be shown in
catalogues, period, and you still won't find prices on the new
instruments. Buffet also doesn't seem to allow vendors to put up what
their "street price," perhaps only what I suppose amounts to what car
dealers call the MSRP--Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. I don't
recall what Leblanc does. Are there significant differences among these
policies that make Yamaha stand out? I'm not sure it's that big a
deal--everyone knows that the larger vendors are going to slice a huge
chunk off the MSRP or MAP or GOUGE or whatever it's called.

Now, I don't think I dreamed this: the smaller handcrafters like Eaton,
Patricola, and Rossi also sell through the big vendors, but there I
believe the price is the price is the price. So this MAP jive seems to
be the purview of the big manufacturers.

And all these are as nothing when you look at the factory-direct prices
(stated in Euros) from the companies in Germany that make German,
Oehler, and Reform Boehm (do these different from Orthodox and
Conservative?) system instruments. Have a clear credit card with a huge
limit, sell one of your kids, or take out a second mortgage:-).

Seriously--fill me in on this, please.

Ken
--
Kenneth Wolman
Proposal Development Department
Room SW334
Sarnoff Corporation
609-734-2538

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