# New store-what lines and why?



## iasca judge (Jan 5, 2010)

Ok everyone, I am in the process of opening a store and am looking for product line suggestions. Jl, treo, Memphis, wet sounds, alpine, kenwood, Rockford and kicker are all out due to being at other shops. 

I am looking into Phoenix gold, arc audio, jvc, Sony decks, focal and stinger.
Any thoughts or suggestions of others to look at.



Audio Innovations


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## [email protected] (Nov 7, 2010)

Elettromedia if available would be a good option..

What is your target market?


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## fish (Jun 30, 2007)

Ground Zero, Pioneer, Clarion, Sundown, Precision Power, Digital Designs, Hybrid Audio Technologies, RE audio, RD Audio, Mosconi, Brax, Dynamat, XS Power, Morel, Image Dynamics, JBL, ...... among many others. Those were just randoms that popped in my head, no affiliations. But, like asked above... what's your target market?


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## iasca judge (Jan 5, 2010)

Target market would help to share, sorry about that.

I am in a town of approx 70k people with 3 colleges and a large gas field industry. I do have a best buy to deal with but that is a different client base. Of the other 2 shops in town, one is mainly a home store that does very little car, the other is so poorly managed that the landlord is betting me 14-18 months before they are gone. They have had to buy a truck already this year due to being damaged so bad.

Joey, I love the em product but that is at one of the shops also.

Fish, thanks there are several interesting brands there I will look into.

Jim


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## Black Rain (Feb 27, 2011)

HU:
Alpine, Pioneer, Clarion

Amps:
JL Audio, Sundown, PPI, Alpine, Hifonics

Speakers:
Arc Audio, CDT Audio, Audio Technology, Scan Speaks, JL Audio

Subs:
Alpine, Arc Audio, CDT Audio, Acoustic Elegance, Audio Technology

Sound Deadener:
Hushmat, Dynamat, Ballistic, SDS

These are just a few. It all depends how you want to tailor your shop. Are going to only service those that desire SQ or are you going to provide for the masses. There are many reputable brands to choose from, just need to decide what type of costumers you want.

Food for thought...


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

Seems to me that even though it isn't too large of a town you have a potential for your clientele to run the gamut. From the poor college kid who just wants his car to go boom boom boom, to the guy with the gas field money looking to do a high end SQ install. 

If I were walking into a shop to day, these are the brands I would most want to see represented. Though, I am sure it wouldn't be possible to carry all of them. 

Alpine - HUs, broad product range, processor, low to upper-mid price point
Pioneer - HUs, broad product range, low to mid price point
JBL - fairly broad product range, processor, low to upper-mid price point
Phoenix Gold - amps, not sure about the rest of their line, mid to upper price point
Zapco - amps, processor, mid to upper price point
Illusion Audio - drivers, C12XL, mid to upper price point
Mosconi/Gladen - amps, processors, mid to upper price point
Focal - amps, drivers, mid to upper price point
Ground Zero - broad product range, low to upper price point
Arc Audio - amps, drivers, processor, mid to high price point
Dynaudio - drivers, high price point
Audiofrog (coming soon) - wild car, big potential, ?mid to high price point?


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## [email protected] (Oct 21, 2009)

Jim, I sent you a PM about Ground Zero.


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## Black Rain (Feb 27, 2011)

Also remember you are the local dealer, you can always acquire any products needed or wanted. There is no limit to which ones to carry but availability can also sell.

Many products are just a phone call away.


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

[email protected] said:


> Jim, I sent you a PM about Ground Zero.


Looks like you might be able to check one of the many brands I mentioned off the list.


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## Angrywhopper (Jan 20, 2010)

Infinity?


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## [email protected] (Nov 7, 2010)

Black Rain said:


> Also remember you are the local dealer, you can always acquire any products needed or wanted. There is no limit to which ones to carry but availability can also sell.
> 
> Many products are just a phone call away.


It kind of sounds like you are referring to purchasing products through distributors that aren't legitimate? 

Distribution is a good model for....... .headunits maybe.

Otherwise, it is a better business choice to go direct with lines for speakers/amps.

I wouldn't buy ANYTHING from a place not authorized to sell the gear. You then rely on them for warranty and tech support. Not worth it IMO.


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## iasca judge (Jan 5, 2010)

Thanks everyone, keep it coming.
Joey, I agree with you, distributors are back up. You have to support and dedicate to your vendors if you expect support. Brandon, I will get in touch with you in a couple days I want to do some research on gz. 
Time to do some research on all of these mentioned


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## miniSQ (Aug 4, 2009)

i would want to see Helix dsp...arc audio....dynaudio and Hybrid Audio.


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## Hoye0017 (Mar 23, 2010)

Black Rain said:


> Also remember you are the local dealer, you can always acquire any products needed or wanted. There is no limit to which ones to carry but availability can also sell.
> 
> Many products are just a phone call away.



Based on your 2 replies, I would assume that:
A. You did not read the original post
B. You don't know anything about the retail car audio business. 

Dealers, especially new ones, cannot simply decide to carry/purchase/sell anything they want. At least not legitimately with the ability to warranty the product.


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## legend94 (Mar 15, 2006)

To me you want to stand apart and have recognized brands. Phoenix Gold should do both of those for you. Maybe you could also add Clarion for the same reason but also for their head units.


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## vwguy383 (Dec 4, 2008)

If I was opening a shop I would like having Phoenix gold. Because I don't think they have any authorized online dealers. They really wanted to stick with the brick and mortar dealers. Which I think is a very good business decisions for there reputation. And good for there dealership network. Gives the mom and pop stores a chance to make it. And lastly, they could also give you the stinger and soundquest lines too. Both great in my opinion.

Everything above could be crap if they have decided to have an online dealer. 

Thanks
Justin


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## jowens500 (Sep 5, 2008)

iasca judge said:


> Brandon, I will get in touch with you in a couple days I want to do some research on gz.
> Time to do some research on all of these mentioned



PM me if you have any questions/concerns about the GZ products. I've been a retailer for awhile now.


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## splaudiohz (Apr 1, 2011)

GZ, Zapco, Image Dynamics, Clarion, Alpine, JL, STP, Audio Mobile


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## Viggen (May 2, 2011)

Like mentioned I would give pheonix gold a good look. Back when the elite line first came out a local shop picked up their product line and they gave me a great deal on the amps. Awesome stuff!! He also carried numerous other brands and has told me a few times he loves selling PG products not just because of the great quality, but he stated the profit margins are also excellent!! 

Even though you have other shops who offer Alpine I would still try to carry their stuff. I think a lot of people still look for that name and will go elsewhere if its something you cannot offer. The local shop where I purchased the PG stuff from only shows 2 or so Alpine decks on their boards and sells quite a bit of their stuff even with B est buy being 2 miles away and other local indy shops carrying their stuff

Lots of great brands out there.... I think it also depends on the clientel you how to get. My local shop that I deal with rarely does SQ stuff & presently has JL as their flagship speaker company.

I would give HAT a good look as well.

I think I need to change professions.... you get to decide which brand of electronics to sell... I get to chose which model of caskets to put on my showroom


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## Hoye0017 (Mar 23, 2010)

I don't think anyone is reading the OP. 

It's likely that he can not get those brands, not that he doesn't want to. 

Many established brands don't sell to just anyone who wants to carry them.


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## ChrisB (Jul 3, 2008)

A couple of weeks back a friend of mine was trying to convince me to invest in adding car audio to his window tinting business. During our short brainstorming session, a lot of mainstream brands were immediately ruled out due to protected territories, minimum purchase/sales requirements, or just being too expensive for the average Joe to afford. I'll meet with him again in a few more weeks to go over the projections to see if it is even worth investing in.

EDIT: Some of the brands we were considering were Sundown and Digital Designs for those who like to get loud; Soundstream or PPI for the intermediate builds; and HAT with some other high end amplifier brand for those who want SQ installs. The only problem is so many people refuse to pay that much money for gear, I don't even know if we should consider catering to the higher end market. Finally, I had such great customer service from MMATS just to purchase one amp for myself, I'd really like to sell their product line if the local market could justify it!


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## DLO13 (Oct 24, 2010)

*Audible Physics -* I think the success forum members here have had in the competitive scene indicate what these drivers are capable of - very reasonably priced, you also don't have too many designers who respond to questions like Rishi does - he truly believes in his product. (These are the reasons I am trying them)

*Image Dynamics - * Quality product, made in the USA, again, Don is on here helping people out and answering questions

*Focal (like you mentioned) - *Well known brand w/ lots of different budget options

*Polk - * Another well known brand that would be great for budget builds, I feel like for their price range, they really do sound pretty nice.


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## hurrication (Dec 19, 2011)

Dang, it's been a few years since I've been in Conway but I never realized its population was that high. 

I'm going to suggest Sundown as a brand to carry.


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## robtr8 (Dec 6, 2011)

http://exileaudio.com/store/


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## djbreal87 (Jun 24, 2012)

I hate to be that guy, but most of what I am reading, only those experienced in car audio would recognize. I say stock the good stuff, but you need to cater to the more "ignorant" market as well. And what is the single most recognizable brand in car audio? Kicker, those college kids will buy something they recognize, you can try and sell them on the obviously better stuff, but people are stubborn and like to stick with what they think they know. If it was me, I would stock the good stuff, as well as some common everyday items. So if you fail to convert the kids to buying the better end stuff, you can still make a sale using your kicker/kenwood/pioneer products. Or am I just way off base with this? This was the issue a local car audio dealer had that I dealt with a lot. They sold Sundown, Clarion, Image Dynamics etc. no kicker and only kenwood HU's. But 99% of everyone that came in wanted kicker, and no amount of arguing or demo car would change their minds, even when what he was trying to sell them was cheaper. And this was only because it was new to them. People dont like new stuff lol


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## Airforceyooper (Sep 22, 2005)

My screen just refreshed and I lost my reply. Government computers ... 

To sum up what I was saying, Phoenix Gold is solid in every way. Excellent company and excellent product, well, since some of the original guys bought the company back and have been restoring it. 

otherwise, unless you have a large bank account or are able to secure a decent loan, you're going to be stuck with distribution. Given that, find distributors you're comfortable with. If you have bad experiences with a distributor, expect that amount of service to continue and find new distributors. 

Not sure if you're already going or not since you don't look to be too far from Dallas, but Kfest is coming up in a couple weeks. You should be there. I'll be there. We can shoot the **** more if you go. Let me know. 

Kfest is Knowledgefest if you don't know. Sponsored by MERA (Mobile Electronics Retailer's Association). Phoenix Gold will have a booth there, as will other manufacturers. The distributors will be there in force as well trying to get your business. It's the best time to talk to the distributors, meet your potential reps, discuss product lines, etc. Plus, they have some great seminars that are definitely worth the trip.


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## Angrywhopper (Jan 20, 2010)

Phoenix Gold is owned by AAMP.


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## Airforceyooper (Sep 22, 2005)

Yes, and if you get in with AAMP, you get Phoenix Gold, PAC-Audio, Stinger, Best Kits, iSimple, And they're also distributors for a few other lines.


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## vwguy383 (Dec 4, 2008)

Airforceyooper said:


> Yes, and if you get in with AAMP, you get Phoenix Gold, PAC-Audio, Stinger, Best Kits, iSimple, And they're also distributors for a few other lines.


Soundquest is one more under the AAMP name. That can go along with the guys wanting the kicker set up! Lol jk! I actually think Soundsquest isnt that bad for a middle level power wire. Many strains and OFC wire.

Thanks
Justin


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## Airforceyooper (Sep 22, 2005)

I don't think any of Sound Quest is OFC. I'm pretty sure it's all CCA. Except for the XS wiring kit, but that's just the one piece. I don't think any of the rest of it is OFC. 

I personally don't sell Sound Quest. Only Stinger.


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## vwguy383 (Dec 4, 2008)

Airforceyooper said:


> I don't think any of Sound Quest is OFC. I'm pretty sure it's all CCA. Except for the XS wiring kit, but that's just the one piece. I don't think any of the rest of it is OFC.
> 
> I personally don't sell Sound Quest. Only Stinger.



Yeah your right. I thought more of it was OFC wire. Before I bought my stinger kit I was looking at soundquest. Oh well. The kids who insist on the kicker subs will still want the CCA creep cap cause they will believe wants on the packaging. :laugh:

OP, have you figured out anything from the suggestions yet?

Thanks
Justin


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