In all fairness
For those not aware - BRC is the Alesis timepiece/remote control for operating one or more ADAT (8-track digital recording) machines from a single control point. BRC literally stands for Big Remote Control. Go figger.
Back on the thread, as I've followed this, I haven't really gotten any sense of participants who have knowledge of the "inside scoop" at Guitar Center. I have not worked there, but I have been very fortunate to have two different band members and close friends work at GC over the years. Both were ultimately very successful and were long-time employees. One still works there, the other has moved on.
What I learned from each of them is that succeeding at GC requires a lot of stamina, patience, perseverance, and very long hours every week. Most people who are willing to take a sales job in that environment are younger and less experienced to begin with, so that kind of character hasn't yet developed for them. However, for those who can persevere through the early going (low pay, long hours) there are some benefits that GC offers that can lead to those people becoming not only successful for themselves, but also good, knowledgable salespeople. GC offers several levels of training that can lead to certification in particular departments or particular types of gear. Those certifications lead to raises and better sales knowledge. Over time, that can lead to a pretty good living for these people. There are also opportunities to expand knowledge into several departments, e.g. guitars vs recording/pro audio vs. keyboards, etc. The more they know, the more they may earn, the more they can sell, the more they get repeat business from individual cusomers. My friend in Phoenix has survived in his position for over 4 years, and is as knowledgable as any salesperson on the floor. The drawback he faces, as I do being a customer loyal to him when I make purchases, is that the GC atmosphere puts a certain amount of pressure to sell a lot of "pieces," since many times the markup is low. This means that he really needs to handle many customers a day to maintain his commissions. I don't get nearly the personalized time and effort I might be afforded at a more exclusive shop, but for me its okay since I trust him, and I am generally a well-informed consumer before I even go into the store to make a purchase.
I feel that he is exceptional in terms of GC's overalll sales staff makeup; I am also sure that there are other exceptions. For the most part, though, I think the core group of long-term experienced sales staff is a fairly small percentage; most of the sales people come and go pretty quickly, and as a consequence are largely useless if the questions get harder than "how much?"
So there's two more cents for spending on your thoughts.
