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Proposal:

A single website where any dealer can place an ad (for free), selling his NOS.

A few rules...

1. The piano must have been in the dealer's possession at least one year.

2. The price posted is non-negotiable. All pianos will have posted prices.

3. Freight charges are actual charges, only. No add-ons.

4. No credit. Payment is by pay-pal, money order, bank draft, etc.

5. All pianos must be from authorized dealers and full factory warranties will apply.


Welcome to the Bottomfeeder Network!

It's a really good idea, Jolly, so naturally nobody will ever do it.

What's a "NOS"?

New Old Stock.

Kurt

Sometimes, dealers get "hung" with pianos...maybe they've changed lines and they have one or two pianos that just don't sell. People tend to walk off from them, thinking something might be wrong with the piano.

Many times, this is where value can be found, if the piano is a fair representative of its line.

For instance....let's say a dealer dropped his Knabe line, for whatever reason...everything has sold, except one WKG70. By all rights, that's a pretty nice piano, but not one that appeals to everyone, either by the tone or the size.

The dealer is tired of looking at this thing, so he posts his add on Bottomfeeder, prices it at cost+$500. That's a crappy profit on that piano, but $500 is better than a sharp stick in the eye.

The piano sells in a couple of weeks, and now the dealer doesn't have to explain the Knabe-in-the-corner.

Could be a win/win.

I predict that white pianos will be some notable percentage of these.

The idea while reasonable, would likely run into conflicts with the written agreements between dealers and manufacturers.

I don't understand this. Your going to buy a $500 piano and spend how much money to ship it?

Just walk into any dealer and simply ask what pianos they are ready to unload fast. Fast like today. So show up with cash in hand, and with some luck, the delivery truck might follow you home.

Piano playing is so much of a visceral physical experience, I can't imagine anyone buying even a $500 piano without playing it first.

Read a bit closer.

Well, I'm certainly in favor of improvements!

I don't think it does the manufacturers any good, either, for a piano to sit on the floor for years...we're not talking about stock that's only been there a few months, but NOS.

Maybe the manufacturers would allow semi-private pricing, say click on this button, provide a valid email address to the dealer and the dealer will email you a price?

Of course they would. They are ALL desperate to unload old inventory, at this point in time.

If manufacturers won't take pianos back from dealers, or make the transfer between dealerships easy, then what's a dealer to do?

This kind of situation becomes a drag on other dealers who have to "deal" with customers who expect the same kind of pricing on all new stock.

Something that gets the NOS out of the market quickly would seem to spread benefit widely.

I think a better name might be Dregslist, but otherwise a great idea.

Haha!

However, that's part of the impetus behind this thread...many of these pianos are not dregs, but decent instruments marooned by fate.

Dregs? There is a current thread about a NOS (New-Old-Stock) 2009 Kawai RX-2. Hardly what would be considered "the dregs." Wouldn't be a "Bottomfeeder" either.

Bottom feeder is an old Norbert term. It is not pejorative.

Not pejorative? Norbert referred to people shopping for a good deal as bottom feeders? Somehow, I doubt that Norbert used the term in the same context.

My friend, the search function is yours.

Me, I'm depending upon my memory. Norbert used the word on more than one occasion and took pains to explain his use of the term.

I wouldn't say being called a bottom feeder is much of a complement...

bottom feeder
n.
1. A fish or other animal that feeds on the bottom of a body of water.
2. One that feeds low on the food chain; a scavenger.
3. Slang
a. An opportunist who profits from the misfortunes of others: "The frazzled, adrenaline-pumped tabloid newshounds [in the movie] are the bottom feeders of contemporary journalism" (Entertainment Weekly).
b. A low or despicable person.
________________________________________
Reference: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/bottom+feeder

Rick

Well, if you want to bring a dictionary into the discussion...