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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I work for the fifth largest dealer in =
the Country.
I'm full time, and one of my duties is to do a full prep on each piano =
that
comes into the store that I'm in charge of. It's kind of like being a =
College
technician, because, when I was starting out, it gave me the opportunity =
to try
every technique that I learned of through the Guild, and to find out =
what works
and what doesn't, for me. I realize that not all dealers give their =
techs such a
free hand in their work, but what I have learned while working for this
dealership has been invaluable, and is almost better compensation than =
what I
get paid. All corporate settings have their aggravations, mind =
you, but
I'll never regret taking the job that I have now. If I were to leave =
tomorrow,
it would have been a great experience. The only reason I don't =
feel like
making more money by working for myself right now, (and I make =
enough to
live on now), is that I'm in charge of their new outlet, and I really =
like the
people running the show there, and I want them to succeed as much as =
possible.
Every customer that I can make happy is a victory for me.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Plus, I got to go to the Little Red =
Schoolhouse,
and Shigeru Kawai training, and Disklavier training,,, all on the =
company's
dime.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Kevin.</FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; =
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<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: =
black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=avery@ev1.net href="mailto:avery@ev1.net">Avery Todd</A> =
</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A =
title=pianotech@ptg.org
href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">Pianotech</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Sunday, April 11, 2004 =
7:37
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: there's NO =
business like NO
business</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV><FONT face="Arial, Helvetica">Dave, <BR><BR></FONT>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=cite cite="" type="cite"><FONT face="Arial, =
Helvetica"
size=2>Hooking up with a store is the best thing you could do =
right
now. I don't know if you have such a connection or not, but =
it's worth
a try. You will get floor tunings/repairs/regulations (for =
which you
won't make squat but you might be able to buy a few groceries with =
it), but
most importantly, you should get free tunings of pianos that the =
store has
sold or rented(charge double your floor tuning rate or more) and =
private
jobs referred to you from the store. If the management is cool =
about
it, you will not have to pay referral fees or give the store a cut =
on the
private jobs, because you've given them good service for a cheap =
price.
</FONT></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>I totally agree. That's where I got a LOT of =
my early
training/experience, whatever, about<BR>30 yrs. ago. Fortunately, the =
dealer
was also a tech, plus he had another tech working out<BR>of the store, =
so I
always had help when I needed it! <BR><BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=cite cite="" type="cite"><FONT face="Arial, =
Helvetica"
size=2>While I often whine about lack of prep of pianos by =
dealers, without
the stores that I do work for, I'd be up an odiferous creek without =
means of
propulsion. </FONT></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>So have I, but once in a while =
we get
lucky and end up with a dealer who's interested<BR>in quality work and =
is
willing to pay a fairly reasonable rate for it. I do some work<BR>for =
one now,
when I can get away from the university. My income would be =
<B>appreciably</B>
<BR>less if it weren't for him! <BR><BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=cite cite="" type="cite"><FONT face="Arial, =
Helvetica"
size=2>Just an idea, </FONT></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>A good one! <BR><BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=cite cite="" type="cite"><FONT face="Arial, =
Helvetica"
size=2>Dave Stahl </FONT></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>Avery
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