Gibson Garage coming to London

[tvickey]

Just came across this news article this morning.  Apparently a Gibson Garage is coming to London!

 

https://www.guitarworld.com/news/gibson-garage-london

[Wolverinebass]

Of course Gibsons are made in a garage. It explains their terrible quality control.

[Doctor J]

I bet it'll have big windows.

[Marky L]

2 hours ago, Wolverinebass said:

Of course Gibsons are made in a garage. It explains their terrible quality control.

 

I believe their "set up" is next to Rickenbacker.

[cetera]

Well that sounds like a store you'd pop into once.... think it looks nice then exclaim "I'm not paying THAT much!" and leave, never to return...

 

The article also references Fender opening a flagship store in Tokyo. I guess they don't need one here as most guitar stores have boring walls full of their gear anyway...

[Woodinblack]

I went in Gibsons shop in Nashville a few years back (before the opening of their 'garage') - and it was interesting in that it had a lot of gibsons, and it was the only place I ever saw a dusk tiger (urghh) and a Firebird X but as @cetera says, you wouldn't actually buy anything from there - the prices are fixed at the RRP that gibson puts on their site, there probably isn't a shop in the word selling gibsons at those prices but obviously because they are Gibson, they can't undercut themselves.

[Cato]

It seems like an odd decision to open a bricks and mortar shop in the current UK economic climate.

 

Especially as Gibson guitars, even the so called 'limited run' Custom Shop and Murphy Lab stuff are widely available from most large UK guitar retailers.

 

My guess, given the location is that it's aimed as much at wealthy tourists visiting the UK as it is at UK resident consumers.

Edited February 23 by Cato

[toneknob]

I wonder if it'll be a "new retail experience" (ie no actual stock, lots of distractions) in the new thing by Denmark St

 

[Doctor J]

It'll be full of Gibson branded tat, it's not about selling guitars at all, anymore. They're trying to position themselves as a "lifestyle brand" like Hard Rock Cafe, Harley Davidson or any other business you see dopes paying crazy money for the privilege of advertising and associating themselves with the logo. It'll be clothes, umbrellas, stools, fridges, ashtrays and any other overpriced crap you can stencil a label on. Bleed authentic, as that creepy guy said in the video.

 

Coming soon, for all your overpriced merch needs, the Warwick Wigwam, the Orange Outhouse, the Marshall Mausoleum and the Fender Fold-up Bed. Buy, buy, buy!

[chris_b]

I only know 2 guitarists using Gibson guitars, and they finally swapped them out for the Burney and Orville versions.

[tauzero]

3 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

I went in Gibsons shop in Nashville a few years back (before the opening of their 'garage') - and it was interesting in that it had a lot of gibsons, and it was the only place I ever saw a dusk tiger (urghh)

 

The what now? <looks> Good Lord, who had the idea of using a Traben bridge as a control plate?

[Woodinblack]

12 minutes ago, tauzero said:

 

The what now? <looks> Good Lord, who had the idea of using a Traben bridge as a control plate?

 

At the time I was looking for a darkfire control box - the darkfire had been disconued (I had one) and the dusktiger had the same electronics. Some things are rare as everyone hung on to theirs. Some are rare as noone bought them!

 

[Woodinblack]

47 minutes ago, chris_b said:

I only know 2 guitarists using Gibson guitars, and they finally swapped them out for the Burney and Orville versions.

 

I know a lot of guitarists using Gibson. They are a fairly useless company but their guitars are fairly ubiquitous despite that.

[Happy Jack]

“The Gibson Garage in Nashville has had an extraordinary impact on the music scene in addition to becoming a global music destination and we are thrilled to bring the Garage to London.”

 

A shop selling over-priced, badly-made guitars is now a "global music destination"?

 

In your dreams, mate ...

 

[borntohang]

Gibson has already had a set of London offices and extensive showroom (with a venue underneath it) for a good few years. Agnesi was working out of there when I went. It's not open to the public though so I guess they see the value in having that collection working as advertising too.

 

I can't imagine the M&M store in Leicester Square makes much of a profit either, but it's good promo.

[tauzero]

1 hour ago, Woodinblack said:

I know a lot of guitarists using Gibson. They are a fairly useless company but their guitars are fairly ubiquitous despite that.

 

One of our guitarists has two, an SG and a Les Paul. He won the Les Paul in a Guitar Marketplace draw so at least he paid a fair price for it.

[Cliff Edge]

My daughter considers she had a lucky escape while living in Nashville. She applied for a job at Gibsons offices, had interviews with whoever was the boss at the time (I think they eventually kicked him out), and got offered the job at a very good salary too. Went home and waited for the contract to arrive. It never did despite numerous phone calls to the office and being told it would be sent out soon, just waiting for the boss to sign it. In the meantime she learned from numerous people in Nashville that Gibson was a crap company to work for and the boss was an idiot. 
She didn’t really like Nashville anyway, so wasn’t too upset. 

Edited August 9, 2023 by Cliff Edge

[Woodinblack]

1 hour ago, tauzero said:

One of our guitarists has two, an SG and a Les Paul. He won the Les Paul in a Guitar Marketplace draw so at least he paid a fair price for it.

 

Yeh, forgot to mention I have had 3 gibsons - Darkfire, EB5 and The Paul and still have the latter. The Paul was something I wanted when I was 18, but I couldn't get the money (£320) together. But when I told the guitarist in my current band he said 'oh I have one' so I bought it off him for not much more than that. A bit tattier, but it is 45 years old (although according to him it was immaculate until 5 years ago when he gave it to his brother).

[P-Belly Evans]

Flippin' Eck...I love my T'Bird - 2013 model, cost me a grand - blagged a epi EBO for free too. Plays like a dream. It's light, has a neck as slim as my Jazz. Low action with no buzz whatsoever. No neck dive. Bass made for rock my bum -any style welcome. The case smells lovely. No orange peeling. It's great with flats or rounds (virtually no set up necessary between either too). The pickups growl like an angry cat. Not lost any value at all ( just my playing costs). It's a bit of a reach down low but I see that as a healthy positive in my older age. Happy days.......

Edited August 9, 2023 by P-Belly Evans

[neepheid]

A big fat meh from this correspondant.  Gibson haven't done anything interesting in bass for at least the last 5 years.  I wouldn't be surprised if they're basically leaving bass to Epiphone now, Epi arguably make a better Thunderbird than Gibson are capable of right now.

 

My guess is that it'll be full of Les Paul guitars and anything else other than basses that you can slap a Gibson logo on.

[Waddo Soqable]

So expensive "posh" guitar shop for rich people then. Hey ho.... 

 

[steve-bbb]

aspirational lifestyle choice hipsters to the front of the queue please  ... will said garage be supplying appropriate permanent fix wall hangers because chances of the poor instrument actually getting played will be looking very slim?  will there be a vernissage so aforementioned hipsters can stick a red dot on their very own personal lifestyle choice whilst sipping their craft beverage? 🤔

[Owen]

 

Edited August 11, 2023 by Owen

[vbance]

Opens tomorrow, just watched something on YT with The Darkness brothers, no mention of basses

[Lozz196]

On 09/08/2023 at 13:56, chris_b said:

I only know 2 guitarists using Gibson guitars, and they finally swapped them out for the Burney and Orville versions.

I know a fair few who’ve done similar with swapping their Les Paul Customs for Tokai Love Rocks.