Visited a Store and was shunned

OP’s experience brings back bad (lame, actually) memories for me. It was the mid-to-late 1980s and I have a sales mgmt job that meant traveling to 39 states (which I did). I was flat-out ignored once in an audio salon in Chicago, and another in Atlanta. It was amusing as much as offensive: I was very well informed in audiophile matters, not a tire kicker at all--but those high end audio dudes wouldn’t even make eye contact with me: a case of audiophile leprosy on sight.

In retrospect it makes a tiny bit more sense--I looked 10 years younger than I actually was, and business dress aside, they obviously sized me up as someone who wandered in by accident and would be better off a Circuit City. But on a business level, it made zero sense that any retailer who fronts gear with that kind of markup and profit margin would dump on a prospective customer. And I was that; I could have easily ordered from them + shipping.

Oh, well. Arrogance is always in season.

To expand on my previous post an audio dealer is not there to provide entertainment. There are too many Audiophiles that like to talk shop and kick tires but have no intention of purchasing anything only to complain about cost and glorify the old days.

Buying into products that belong to an Industry that is dead in the water from individuals at the sales frontline who really are struggling to recall a period when money was free and easy to extract from a customer. Especially as the through-the-door turnover of customers is no longer a thing, are creating a sales staff who are unwilling to massage a closed-won; it looks like a 'gift horse' is the level of trade they are willing to participate in. 

All very, very different to my experiences of the 90's when an audio retailer would reserve a room for a few hours as the minimum time allowance, sit a potential customer in the room with a hot beverage and a top-up if wanted. The only discussion outside of the structure for the demo period was the number of tracks preferred to be listened to for the demo, and whether the rep or customer was to change the Albums. All this offered in a real friendly manner in a selection of audio retailers.

Other audio retailers really under the influence of a Brand were not allowed to be so liberal in their dealings with a customer; the customer was wrong and needed education to teach them why the Brand was their only option for a purchase and why they should start budgeting for the upgrade route with immediacy. 

Those Brands with Billion Annual turnovers in the present market have a lot to answer for when the model used for sales is considered.  

@asvjerry 

If you ever get down to the Foothills from Asheville, there is a great store in Winston-Salem called Ember Audio.  The owner, Chris, is a great guy and the employees are top notch.

Asheville may be a "new" audio gear wasteland, but with all the high income retirement towns in WNC (Cashiers, Highlands, Blowing Rock, Flat Rock) I’ve seen some great deals on used gear up there.  Keep an eye out for some Heresy or Cornwalls for me!

“Buying into products that belong to an Industry that is dead in the water from individuals at the sales frontline who really are struggling to recall a period when money was free and easy to extract from a customer.”

@pindac - Are you always so upbeat?  Not that I disagree.  B&M Audio is not for sissys. That business hit headwinds from the start of the Internet and IMO will never be what it was, like so many other things. Just like the retail folks need to find their own niche and secret sauce to have a chance at success, customers should find the buying niche that best suits their personality and pocketbook since there are many more options now.

“There are too many Audiophiles that like to talk shop and kick tires but have no intention of purchasing anything only to complain about cost and glorify the old days.”

@dayglow - Maybe so, but the best retail associates know how to figure that out and extract themselves from the tire-kickers with class and without demeaning potential future customers.  The best shops should train their teams so that all customers have a similar positive experience.