ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
Not a rumour - it happened over the summer period.
I'm sure its more than about a few dealers straying from the rules, its bigger picture decision.
I wonder how stringent the rules were /are in any case to deviate from
Not to worry, the legions of dealers will step in to fill the gap...oh, wait.
Jeff
I'm afraid I'm recovering from the BeoVirus.
mjmedlo:True story Hard shutdown several months ago.
Hard shutdown several months ago.
'Apparently the case. Here's one in Queens, NYC unloading his B&O stuff at a discount, in case anyone's interested.
Don't know if my local dealer was a "pro partner", but they seem to have quit the business. They are a massive multi-brand appliance store in the Chicago suburbs that had a B&O "store within a store". No more B&O listings on their website. No longer listed as a dealer on bang-olufsen.com. I'm sad. I bought a ton of equipment from them and they always treated me right. Now the closest store is in Ohio.
You undoubtedly mean ABT. No, not a pro partner. Not sure why B&O isn't searchable on their web site but they're still a dealer. Call Oli on extension 2711.
'Looked at B&O's store locator. Down to 9 shops in the USA..
If you start from here, you can see their product listings:
https://www.abt.com/brand/Bang-And-Olufsen
If Abt and B&O do dump each other, it's unfortunate because Abt was the closest to the Deerfield (IL) corporate headquarters, and you could generally count on them to get product shipments as-soon-as... I think Abt doesn't need B&O, rather than vice versa. Once upon a time they had plenty of room under that new roof for their large store-within-a-store, but they have started doing furniture/mattresses & watches -- and have been changing up their high-end appliance lines too. Who knows, maybe they write enough business to support that dedicated B&O home theater room behind the stereo & TV room... but I think it could be more profitable with greater volume of more common goods. Abt is good for B&O; the dealer I don't understand is the Hallandale Beach (FL) store at the Gulfstream race track/casino. It is no longer the case that Miami is the shopping hub for all of Central and South America, especially since B&O has dealers throughout the region -- no less sparsely than in the USA at least. Who knows, maybe the betting crowd are good prospects?
trackbeo: the dealer I don't understand is the Hallandale Beach (FL) store at the Gulfstream race track/casino.
Lots of $$$ in South Florida and the only shop left in FL now that Palm Beach is r.i.p. Rationale for existence I suppose.
Yes, it's Abt.
I talked to them yesterday (and bought a floor model BS2), and apparently they're having a "spat" with B&O NA so each has removed references to each other from their respective websites. The sales guy said they are still fully committed to the brand (and they were definitely were behaving like a dealer - ordered a "wheely" remote for me)... just some details being worked out and negotiation hardball, or, the cynic/pessimist in me thinks, they know better than to bad mouth the brand when they have a show room full of Eclipses, Horizons, BL90s and BL50s (and who knows how much stock is in their warehouse).
I also think that B&O probably needs Abt more than vice-versa. I live a few miles away, buy all my home goods there and routinely stop in to see the latest and greatest every/any home good you could think of (wall sized pac-man, $10K mattress sets, $50K ranges). The show room gets smaller with each remodel, and it's also usually empty whenever I'm there (and this store is busy all the time, every day). Then again, even though there's almost always people in their $100K home theater, I wonder how many of those they ever sell...
Speaking about oddly situated stores, what about Cincinnati? It's a nice enough city, but it never struck me as particularly wealthy or a shopping destination. Maybe the horse farmers in northern Kentucky like B&O?
Abt is still a dealer, products are back on the website.
BV11-46, Beolab 3, Beoplay A1, A9, H3ANC, H8, H9i
I was in contact with B and O at Abt yesterday and all seemed normal with respect to B and O. I have been shopping there for years for both B and O and other products. Had not seen this thread until after I was in contact with them. The products are not listed on their web page at this point, or based on reading this thread perhaps I should say they have been removed again. I plan on placing an order with them tomorrow for a BeoRemote One.
Beolab 28s Beolab 9s Beolab 12-3s Beolab 1s Beolab 6000s 2 pairs Beolab 4000s Beovision 7-55 Beovision 10-40 Beoplay V1 32 inch Beovision Avant 32 inch Beosound 1 (CD player) Beosound 3000 Beosound 5 Core Essence MKII Beoplay M5
Well, look at it this way...if there are no stores to buy B&O from, then all those pesky customer complaints that the products don't work right just magically vanish! Damned plebeians anyway.
There are many, many people with no store locally any more.
No stores = No brand recognition
No brand recognition = No demand
No demand = More store closures
It's a tailspin.
Barry Santini:It started with the ill-advised exclusive showroom concept. That comes from the old-style, “European” way of thinking where store strata and position ruled.
Nail on head. The exclusive 'B1 only' route was snobbery at its best with a large dollop of stupidity and a sprinkle of short-sightedness.
If I had a Pound, Dollar or Euro for every time I've seen someone walk straight past a B1 store saying 'lovely stuff, but I couldn't afford to go in there..' I'd be a rich man.
Snobbery route not dead yet.
https://www.surfacemag.com/articles/bang-olufsen-new-york-store/
9
vikinger: Snobbery route not dead yet. https://www.surfacemag.com/articles/bang-olufsen-new-york-store/
Step forward TripEnglish for a second shot at the title!
Ban boring signatures!
9 LEE:There are many, many people with no store locally any more. No stores = No brand recognition No brand recognition = No demand No demand = More store closures It's a tailspin.
Puncher: 9 vikinger: Snobbery route not dead yet. https://www.surfacemag.com/articles/bang-olufsen-new-york-store/ Step forward TripEnglish for a second shot at the title!
Here he is!
https://mobile.twitter.com/tripenglish
beotex: Actually, I think they are getting lots of brand recognition through their HP and Automotive collaborations....
Actually, I think they are getting lots of brand recognition through their HP and Automotive collaborations....
HP.. Premium Brand?
Ford.. Premium Brand?
You're correct on the recognition, but I'm not sure what merrily jumping into bed with 'mainstream' companies says about your intentions.
beotex:The US stores are all but gone, and even my dealer in Denmark has been feeling the online pinch. I really struggle to know what the right answer is. Retail is slowly dying either way unless someone comes up with an interesting new way to get foot traffic and entice people to stop looking at lowest price and quickest delivery as the main purchasing criteria.
To me, the most disappointing part of losing this specific dealer is that Abt seems to be successfully navigating today's tough retail environment and are thriving. They sell all kinds of audio/video, appliances and select home goods (bbqs, furniture, mattresses). Their showroom is busy almost all the time, year round. They're not afraid to have very high end stuff on display. Their B&O business started as a "showroom inside a showroom" that got smaller and less distinct from the rest of the business over time. They still had a dedicated "shop", but sometimes they'd put some cheaper B&O stuff on display with mainstream stuff. My guess is that B&O NA tried to strong arm them about something, and they said "no thanks". Seems like I read somewhere that B&O NA is under new leadership... so the new leader is leading (unfortunately, it seems, in the wrong direction).
I remember being told that the "old" European marketing aimed at the professional classes wouldn't work in the US and the future was $100K+ custom installs.
Just because it didn't work then is no reason not to keep on trying until all the money has gone!