1. MacKenzie & Marr build handmade, unique guitars in China and ship them out
of their warehouse in Canada.
“The music business is the worst distribution channel
imaginable. Factory to brand to warehouse to multiple
distributors to dealers. High end guitars are almost
always in small retailers,” said John Marr, co-founder.
This allows them to cut 60% off of the price of hand-
crafted guitars.
“I was looking for a product that could be sold on the
web..had to be expensive (not interested in selling 25
cent widgets) had to evoke passion (word of mouth) and
one day Jonathan asked if I had played any Chinese
guitars. I said ‘Yes, total garbage,’” said Marr.
“Jon replied that I needed to go try one of the newer
solid wood ones. I did and they were good and we knew
how to make the better. Voila! The product I was looking
for!” he said.
http://techcrunch.com/2012/08/09/mackenzie-marr-bring-guitar-making-into-the-21st-century/
http://techcrunch.com/2012/10/04/up-close-with-mackenzie-marrs-handmade-online-only-guitars/
2. Video clip
● http://www.youtube.com/watch?
feature=player_embedded&v=Mv_zCSYHM2Q
● http://www.cbc.
ca/player/Shows/Shows/Dragons'+Den/Web+Exclusives/Wher
e+Are+They+Now%3F/ID/2164085226/
3. Interesting comments ...
Disruption in the guitar supply chain is interesting in theory but how
many people are in the market of "wants a $1000 guitar that they
can't play before purchase?" Before I was in tech I was a fulltime
studio/orchestra pit player and sound isn't enough--feel and
playability are incredibly important, as is reliabilty, which is
something that can't yet be assessed
> [some dude] I wouldn't buy a guitar I couldn't play first.
> [Marr] A perfectly understandable sentiment. You're not alone and
we recognize that our business model - even with our 7 day love-it-
or-leav-it return policy doesn't suit everyone. We have sold a lot of
guitar to people just like you though. Their friend shows up with one
of our instruments. They play it and ask "Why did I wait so long to
order one?"
http://techcrunch.com/2012/08/09/mackenzie-marr-bring-guitar-making-into-the-21st-century/
http://techcrunch.com/2012/10/04/up-close-with-mackenzie-marrs-handmade-online-only-guitars/
4. Discussion
> Is the guitar market actually ripe for disruption?
> What are the challenges associated with this business?
> How can the business grow? Does growth necessitate a
move toward traditional business models?
> Is this business viable or is it doomed to fail? Why?
> Is selling large/expensive items via the web viable?
