<html> <head> <META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 10 (filtered)"> <style>  </style> </head> <body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=blue> <div class=Section1> Gregor:   My website tells what I do but it’s a combination of regular field servicing, rebuilding and sales. I try to keep a balance but slowly rebuilding work and purchases for resale (with reconditioning or rebuilding first) has pushed aside the amount of time I have for tuning. I’ve sent some of my tuning customers to others, especially where any real travel is involved or where their service habits are too infrequent. However, I do think it’s important to keep a foot in the field as it keeps you in circulation, gives you opportunities for new projects, potential sales and purchases plus there is the human side to this business and those types of interactions keep us from becoming too reclusive and disconnected. Jon Page’s post reflects my sentiment. Quality of life and the human factor are very important. At the end of all things I won’t be laying there with a calculator thinking about how much money I made but whether the work I did was satisfying, whether I accomplished something, interacted well as a human being, gave something back and had a quality of life. With today’s economy it’s a struggle to keep the pressure for $$$ in balance.   I do replace soundboards and with respect to your other post it makes economic sense if the piano has enough inherent value and doesn’t if it doesn’t. Redesigning an otherwise lesser piano can add value to the instrument but it’s a harder sell. Some people are hung up on the fallboard decal. I don’t agree that the manufacturers are the only ones who know how their boards are made and I’m not sentimental about old soundboards. Either it’s doing the job it’s supposed to or it’s outlived its usefulness and needs to be replaced (this topic has been explored and argued extensively on the list). Whether you can make it work economically depends on various factors but it is doable (and fun!).   <div> David Love davidlovepianos@comcast.net www.davidlovepianos.com </div> -----Original Message----- From: pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org] On Behalf Of Gregor _ Sent: Saturday, February 16, 2008 2:39 AM To: pianotech@ptg.org Subject: Do you sell pianos?   I read the postings about valuing ourselves and David Love gave the advise to expand the repertoire for having a better income. That raises the question: what is your repertoire? Most of you readers here might be located in the USA and I would like to know with what you earn your money.   The German situation is usually this: the typical piano tech who runs a 1-man-business sells pianos besides from tuning, servicing or rebuilding them. That does not necessary mean that they run a real shop, but often there are occasions when you get offered an old piano for little money or for free. Most of my collegues here in Germany repair and sell such pianos even if they run no shop with regular opening hours. There is a German proverb: *Ist der Handel noch so klein, bringt er mehr als Arbeit ein.* That means: doesn´t matter how small a dealing is, it allways provides more income than your hands work. I think it´s true (like the most proverbs).   So, my situation is typical: 3 days a week I am in field service and 3 days I am in my store where I sell new and used pianos. And I am happy that I am not located in a rural areal but in a city with 280.000 inhabitants (50.000 of them university students) so that I have not to drive far to my customers. But I think even in a rural area it should be possible to sell some used pianos. What´s about the US situation (or elsewhere, here are some british list members, too)? And if the techs don´t sell the pianos, who then? Are the dealers typically no techs, just sales people? Here in Germany almost every dealer has a background as technician. Concerning the prices: I charge (converted) 117 US-Dollar and the range in my hometown is from 110 to 147 Dollar. That´s my orientation for my prices. And I don´t feel better or worse than my competitors. I just try to stay at the lower price level and I don´t think that I would get more customers if I decided to raise my prices because customers think: more expensive=better quality. Many people call and ask for prices at the phone. Then they compare and call again (or not). All competitors in my area have a good reputation, so for most customers it´s a question of money. And it´s getting worse year by year: since 6 or 7 years the German income situation has dramatically changed. People from the middle income class can´t afford many products or services anymore and money is getting shorter for many people. An advertising slogan from the biggest electronic discounter is "closefistedness is cool" and has meanwhile gotten proverb status. So, it´s the price that counts when range of quality within the competitors is small.   Gregor <div class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-left:.5in;text-align:center'> <hr size=2 width="100%" align=center> </div> Express yourself instantly with MSN Messenger! <a href="http://clk.atdmt.com/AVE/go/onm00200471ave/direct/01/" target="_new">MSN Messenger</a> </div> </body> </html>