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ivan@stellysee.de
| From | "jkosmicki" <jkosmicki@cccneb.edu> |
| Subject | Re: CD's for sale...below cost, every day, all day |
| Date | Thu, 20 Nov 2003 14:46:10 -0000 |
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Bruce Brodeen states:
>Not Lame's
> wholesale on these:
>
> $12.87
> And
> $20.18
> respectively
>
> That is WHOLESALE, folks, not retail.
>
I have been teaching a unit in my Writing and Research class for years
now on the "Wal-mart" influence on American business. The consensus
seems to be that smaller businesses can't really compete with the
"big-box" retailers. The recommendation seems to be that smaller
retaileres need to find their niche that the big-box companies simply
won't find big enough to compete for.
Isn't that what Not Lame is all about? Isn't that really what you've done?
I'm not being facetious or condescending here, but other than the fact
that it is the Beatles, why is Not Lame trying to compete with the big
boxes on something with this level of publicity? (and I realize that
other posts have indicated that Capitol underestimated the actual
demand, but I've seen three articles on it in my local paper in the
last month, so the publicity machine is still out there)
Quite frankly, I don't think of Not Lame when it comes to major label
material. I see Not Lame as the place where I can find the
specialized stuff -- not the mass-produced stuff. Despite the fact
that I SHOULD be able to, I'm not going to find Michael Carpenter at a
big-box. (Nor is the big-box going to have the level of personal
service to send me an email when a Michael Carpenter-produced CD comes
available from your site)
I like Not Lame, and I support both your company and the product that
you provide. Not as much as either one of us would like, but you know
what, if I'm not buying from Not Lame, it's because my budget dollar
for music right then is stretched too tight, and I'm not buying from
anyone.
I have used an article by Mr. Honorama himself, M. Bennett, about the
problems created by Best Buy in the music retail field in my English
Composition course for the past few semesters. it's a good example of
cause/effect argumentation. however, my community college students
have wildly divergent responses. The 18-19 year olds just don't see
the point. The older students see the point immediately, and usually
agree.
The difference? the 18-19 year olds living in this small midwestern
community of about 40,000 people have never had a real rekkid store
available to them. The older students remember Dusty's Records and
Sound Waves before the chains drove them under. These younger
students do not know what it is like to go into a specialty store
where the clerk actually KNOWS about what they are selling. They
can't perceive of being able to go into a store for a couple hours
just to hang around and discuss something they love with other people
who also appreciate it while surrounded by that object. The closest
that they know is skateboard stores, and that's just a small portion
of the total population.
What my students indicate that they want, more than anything else, is
a way to find out information. These kids who love music need places
where they can go to find out more about music -- they're not going to
get it from big-box stores. They love "obscure" stuff -- they love
being into a band that the majority of their classmates have never
heard of.
So what does this rambling all mean? I don't know. I hate that Bruce
Brodeen, who does such a good job of promoting what he loves is so
frustrated and angry about things that he can't control or change. I
hate that in this information age we have people desperate for
information but refusing to support the stores and retailers who could
give it to them because that knowledge comes at a price of a few
dollars more a CD. I hate the damn big-boxes because they are simply
about buying and consuming, not about appreciation of what you purchase.
But I do what I can, and I support the specialty retailers as best as
I can.
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