Home Depot Expo has been around for a while, expecially here in the southern U.S. But if you think about it, Home Depot is doing with stores what audio companies are doing with their R&D. Harmon International now owns Madrigal. Klipsch (god help us) has just purhchased Mondial Designs. High-End makers don't have the cash to continue designing the high-dollar, low-quantity items that we love. Can anyone say Wadia?--and dare I say it? Hales Design Group. I was in tears over that one. These companies need an assembly line monster like Harmon to buy them and support them. Home Depot sells everything, affordable building materials; Expo sells high-end.
New Home Depot concept coming to Audio?
Home Depot just opened a new store in town with a different name - it's called Expo and it's a mega-store for home remodelling and decorating. It has high-end appliances, oriental rugs, etc. My wife, who has been reading about kitchen upgrades for the past year and has tried in vain through different venues to see all the products she has read about can now see most of them in one stop locally. I don't know how the prices are, but if the concept catches on I would think the prices would come down somewhat based on competition and increased sales in this market segment.
I've always wondered if high-end audio manufacturers will ever see benefit in this approach and support it as well. I don't think you'll see a mega-store with only products that you see in boutiques, but the ability to go see a lot of different manufacturers' products in one place, many more than you see in any given high-end shop today, would be an interesting concept to consumers. I suppose the market for $3K ovens is bigger than the one for $3K amps but does it have to be?
I know a lot of high-end shops are falling on hard times, but there are some where business is just booming and it would seem to me that one of the big-time retailers could open a new chain that services the high-end audio / video market and designs stores with display capabilities that go well beyond what we have to choose from today and gain a critical mass of manufacturers. Any opinions? -Kirk