Let me chime in here. I am a small mom and pop store that has survived these many years (36) but I am finding it more difficult the past few years.
What I've found is that if you just try to compete with a GC or Sam Ash and sell the same stuff and offer the same low quality service, you absolutely won't survive.
Marty Albertson, the CEO of Guitar Center has a daughter who played on a soccer team I coached about 10 years ago. I still remember what Marty's advise was to me. "Keep offering the service you offer, teach private lessons (they don't) and find areas we don't excel in and you will be fine". All these years later, I have to tend to agree with him. I would have been out of here a long time ago if it weren't for me getting heavy into arranger high end products, middle eastern keyboards, guitar brands not sold at Guitar Center and Sam Ash, such as Godin and Seagull Canadian guitars and never offering less than my all in customer service.
About 6 years ago, Sam Ash opened about 2 miles west of my store and Guitar Center was about 6 miles East of my store. Since then, another Guitar Center opened about 2 miles North of my store. Every day I hear parents and more mature customers (over 30) tell me how much they dislike shopping in those stores and yet I know that this is the future of our music business. Only when and if consumers rise up and say "I mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore" will stores like mine prosper.
I've said this before and I'll say it again....Without help and sales from people like the Synthzone crowd, stores like mine would be gone. It is getting harder and harder. I can tell by the fewer new products coming into the market that there seems to be a lull throughout the United States. I hope we see new products coming out soon to drive the market.


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George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California
818-881-5566
www.kayesmusicscene.com