random Stew Mac inventory observations

glasshand · Fri Apr 01, 2022 7:43 am

I love Stew Mac, but sometimes their inventory choices are just weird. For example, they carry pedals! ...exactly two Way Huge pedals, three MXR pedals, and two Dunlop pedals. The Crybaby, probably Dunlop's most iconic pedal, isn't even one of them, only the bass Crybaby.

They carry 20 different Kluson tuners! Not the KVDF, though. (I specifically asked them about the KVDF, and they said "Maybe at some point in the future.")

toomanycats · Fri Apr 01, 2022 7:53 am

That they carry MXR pedals, but not the Phase 90 . . . yeah, that's a head scratcher. That's like going into a McDonald's and being told they don't have any hamburgers.

BatUtilityBelt · Fri Apr 01, 2022 10:43 am

To me, Stew Mac appears to have a unique position. They are a go-to for luthiery tools for many people, and they have some items not available anywhere else. So their customer base has been locked in for a long time. I also think they take advantage of that more than most companies. They charge a high premium on a lot of things I can find elsewhere much cheaper. They do that so much that I only buy from Stew Mac if I can't find the item elsewhere. So my guess is they sell pedals they can make extra profit on, and don't sell pedals they can't get those margins on.

honyock · Fri Apr 01, 2022 11:57 am

Their clearance section was always great. So much so that I signed up for their membership and spent way too much time buying all sorts of tools I thought I couldn't live without.

Now I am too busy to use said tools...

One day...when I no longer have too many hobbies and too little time, it will be nice though.

Sent from my SM-G998U using Tapatalk

Lefty4Sale · Tue Apr 05, 2022 9:10 pm

BatUtilityBelt wrote: ↑Fri Apr 01, 2022 10:43 am To me, Stew Mac appears to have a unique position. They are a go-to for luthiery tools for many people, and they have some items not available anywhere else. So their customer base has been locked in for a long time. I also think they take advantage of that more than most companies. They charge a high premium on a lot of things I can find elsewhere much cheaper. They do that so much that I only buy from Stew Mac if I can't find the item elsewhere. So my guess is they sell pedals they can make extra profit on, and don't sell pedals they can't get those margins on.

Bat,

I agree with you. StewMac is in a very unique position and has a captive customer base. The one thing I know about them, their stuff, files and such, is tip notch compared to some of the other stuff I've tried. For that I'm happy to pay a bit more. I'm a real hack when it comes to repairing or upgrading guitars, but their tools and video's have been very helpful to me.