Hi Stephen, I think you will have to divide customers into "market segments" in order to get a clear picture. I don't think there is a single average customer who represents the entire small grand market. Here are well known examples: 1. Small living quarters, customer is sincere about learning how to play but has an aversion to the look of verticals. 2. The piano is not intended for playing at all, it's just a decoration. It doesn't matter if it has a soundboard. The customer is measuring the lid size to determine how many objects will fit on top. 3. Child is starting piano lessons, mom would like to decorate the house. Why not combine the elegant appearance of a grand piano with the child's needs? In the process, it is discovered that grand pianos unfortunately take up room. Hence the glossy 4'10" model. 4. For those with more money but less than all consuming love for pianos, size may be the main issue. People in this category may want "only the best" in their quarters. They will likely buy a S&S Model "S". Here, I am thinking of a person in a large city, living in a smallish but expensive apartment. I don't think that the majority of buyers think of loudness when making their decision. Some gray market pianos have the quiet play feature which for some reason never became popular in the U.S. So, to answer your question: For most customers the combination of lower cost and less space requirement will be the decision maker. Most households have more than one decision maker. Unless everyone agrees that a concert grand is a "must have", you can expect the pianist to demand the largest piano they can stuff into the room, while the non-player in the household may try to minimize the foot print and expense. I know of some instances where the spouse didn't care for a large piano because it took up too much living room space. You can get a fairly accurate picture about this by estimating the sales figures for the various quality grades of small pianos. Take some examples: 1. How many Chinese 5' grands are sold, and at what average price. 2. How many small Yamaha and Kawai pianos are sold, what is the average price. 3. How many high priced tiny grands are sold. The sales figures for each category may tell the story. Vladan ================ Stephen wrote: Why do consumers buy a small grand instead of a large grand? Two obvious reasons: 1. cheaper 2. more suited to domestic conditions because (a) smaller footprint and/or (b) not as loud but it's not clear which of these is the driver, and whether different reasons apply to different classes of consumer. I'll pose a hypothetical question and short circuit reason #1: suppose all grands of a particular famous make sold for the same amount. Would you expect reason #2 to still drive consumers to the smaller grands, and if so is it (a) and (b) that kicks in? or would you expect most consumers to go for the big grands and somehow make them work in their domestic circumstances? Stephen -- Dr Stephen Birkett __________________________________ Yahoo! Mail - PC Magazine Editors' Choice 2005 http://mail.yahoo.com
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