Dawsons are in administration... again.

[zbd1960]

As someone who is 'serious' about various genres of music... the situation about where you can go to look at sheet music or try instruments int he Shropshire / Cheshire / Merseyside / Manchester area is dire. By sheet music I mean more than the standard exam board stuff or tutor books. There's Forsyth's in Manchester (Rushworth's in Liverpool went over 25 years ago, the place in Altrincham went 10 or 15 years ago) and a place in Shrewsbury and they're the only ones I know of.

 

For saxes, there's a shop in each of Liverpool, Manchester, Stoke-on-Trent, and Shrewsbury.

 

For strings, there's only a couple of luthiers doing some stuff in Liverpool, there's a couple around Manchester etc. 

 

Guitars are somewhat better served, but mostly with generic stuff. 

 

And early music? It's either one of the two branches of the Early Music Shop (Saltaire and London) or from a maker.  

Edited September 4, 2021 by zbd1960

[Wonky2]

It's been a long time coming..... like watching a car crash in slow motion.

our drummer lost his job at Dawson's this week after 21 years there.... 

hope they all get sorted with something quickly 👍🏻

 

[Saul Panzer]

First time I've heard of Dawsons, guessing they were a local place or didn't do much advertising.

[Kiwi]

23 minutes ago, Saul Panzer said:

First time I've heard of Dawsons, guessing they were a local place or didn't do much advertising.

A national chain of music shops. 

[NancyJohnson]

There's a Dawson branch in Reading, not a prime location, but easy to find, plenty of parking.

 

Odd place though, channelling my inner Swiss Tony, buying an instrument at Dawsons isn't like making love to a beautiful woman, it was a bit like buying a bike at Halfords.  I suppose an apt Americanism here is that they're a Mom'n'Pop instrument store.

 

On the handful of times I went there I got the feeling that they didn't seem to particularly specialise in one thing - way too much floor space set over for pianos - and the clientele seemed to be monied/clueless dads standing over teen sons playing Smells Like Teen Spirit while salespeople circled like vultures, possibly sniffing a commission.  It was a soulless shopping experience.

 

Considering they were a reasonably big chain, by comparison it's amazing to see how Andertons monetized their brand out of a relatively small out of town centre retail outlet (probably half the size of Dawsons in Reading), a single warehousing facility in Guildford and an engaging You Tube channel.  I hope that Lee and Co. realise they are doing things right and that an unnecessary move to a bigger premises will probably be the ruination of them.

 

The real sadness is that there was a great little independent guitar shop in Market Place, Reading; knowledgeable staff, in-store tech/set-up guy, great stock etc. that shut soon after Dawsons opened as they couldn't compete.  I suppose the owners of that place are having a little chuckle to themselves.  Again.

 

 

 

[AndyTravis]

7 hours ago, Saul Panzer said:

First time I've heard of Dawsons, guessing they were a local place or didn't do much advertising.

Yup.

 

big issue I had.

[Jus Lukin]

-

Edited March 15, 2022 by Jus Lukin

[ubit]

Every time I go into Guitar Guitar in Glasgow I am amazed as to how quiet it always is. As soon as I start looking someone is over trying to get me to try something. I'm just looking must be a dagger into their hearts as they see yet another sale going down the drain. I really feel for these guys as they need sales to keep their jobs and it must be a long boring day if no one comes in. I suspect that online sales are what keep them going.

 

I did contact them recently about selling gear but their offers were derisory. I did say I realise that you are a business but I am not giving this gear away for that.

[Barking Spiders]

On 04/09/2021 at 08:03, OliverBlackman said:

The thing I don’t get is why these chain stores all sell more or less the same stuff. PMT, Andertons, GAK, Guitar Guitar - there’s not much that they individually specialise in. Yet the independent stores that have a niche seem to get by - albeit with much lower overheads.

Anderton's are the sole stockists of the Sire range though.

[zbd1960]

There are multiple issues here, some of which are common to the high street in general, others relevant to specific sectors. 

 

Music chain stores such as Dawsons (I think they originated in Cheshire about 120 years ago?) seem to have adopted the car sales methodology of 'incentivising' staff through sales commission. This is also an issue with photography shops. Management need to get away from this outmoded method - it doesn't work. Decent honest staff get shafted by grasping greedy commission hunters, and customers dislike being hassled. Pay people a decent wage and ditch the fake 'sales driving' methods. 

 

As I've said before, the model of business rates and taxes is broken. Big multi-national chains and internet box shifters are able to get tax breaks for opening a low cost warehouse out-of-town, with free parking. Multi-nationals can also play the tax domiciliation game to reduce taxes further. Meanwhile your small chain or independent is stuck with full taxes, outrageous high street rents from London-based absentee landlords, high business rates, and shoppers have to pay to park.

 

It is not an even playing field. Specialist retailers, e.g. music, hi-fi, photography, are nearly extinct.   

[OliverBlackman]

3 hours ago, Barking Spiders said:

Anderton's are the sole stockists of the Sire range though.

When I got a Sire you could only get them from Thomann. It won’t be long until they’re another mass produced product available at most retailers. 
 

There are lots of very talented luthiers all around the world, but often you have to commission a build before you get to try one.