Here is my 2 cents from a manufacturer.
1. Sales are good.
2. Dealers have to retool for many reasons that I will list separately. Dealers that don't retool, are closing down or having a hard time selling.
3. There seems to be a seasonality to sales, along with economic swings with are counterintuitive.
Dealers need retooling.
1. The older buyers are downsizing.
2. The new products are better, faster and cheaper.
3. There is a lot going on in the Audio industry that even manfacturers are finding hard to keep up with.
4. There are many new entrants from around the world. These products are excellent.
5. Asia likes large, bulky bling products. Europe likes sleek designs. US likes both.
6. The trophy buyers are shrinking fast. Dealers selling trophy systems for the highest profit, other then NYC, are being challenged.
7. Newer, younger buyers are looking for value, performance and use. For example I am chided by the older users for the LED VU meters and liked by the younger users for the LED VU meters.
8. The internet!
9. Headphone users are the next generation of Audiophiles. This is a huge market of Audiophiles growing up.
The above is not all of equal weight and seen only through my lens. So I am sure there are other views also. The economy is good, so there is a lot of confidence in the buyers and a lot of purchases that stretch budgets. That is good news. I suspect that there is also pent up demand that is a little confused with so many products now coming out, and seem to be changing fast. Computer, Vinyl, Tape.
Also note that when the economy is good, there is more of other activities, hence less time for Audio. I see business owners spending more time expanding and less time with Audio. Employees working harder with more cash but less time for Audio.
1. Sales are good.
2. Dealers have to retool for many reasons that I will list separately. Dealers that don't retool, are closing down or having a hard time selling.
3. There seems to be a seasonality to sales, along with economic swings with are counterintuitive.
Dealers need retooling.
1. The older buyers are downsizing.
2. The new products are better, faster and cheaper.
3. There is a lot going on in the Audio industry that even manfacturers are finding hard to keep up with.
4. There are many new entrants from around the world. These products are excellent.
5. Asia likes large, bulky bling products. Europe likes sleek designs. US likes both.
6. The trophy buyers are shrinking fast. Dealers selling trophy systems for the highest profit, other then NYC, are being challenged.
7. Newer, younger buyers are looking for value, performance and use. For example I am chided by the older users for the LED VU meters and liked by the younger users for the LED VU meters.
8. The internet!
9. Headphone users are the next generation of Audiophiles. This is a huge market of Audiophiles growing up.
The above is not all of equal weight and seen only through my lens. So I am sure there are other views also. The economy is good, so there is a lot of confidence in the buyers and a lot of purchases that stretch budgets. That is good news. I suspect that there is also pent up demand that is a little confused with so many products now coming out, and seem to be changing fast. Computer, Vinyl, Tape.
Also note that when the economy is good, there is more of other activities, hence less time for Audio. I see business owners spending more time expanding and less time with Audio. Employees working harder with more cash but less time for Audio.