now that I've had a couple days to kinda catch up from the drive down and back (compared to the drive, exhibiting at NAMM was easy) here's a few random thoughts from this year's show
- the overall mood this year by both exhibitors and attendees seemed the most optimistic since I began attending 5-6 years ago
- logistics for our own booth was significantly more involved that the booth share we've done in years past. getting 22 instruments ready in time was somewhat easy compared to getting all the legalities/insurance/itineraries/hotels/transportation/schedules/etc ... of our own booth and 12 people from across the US together into a 10x10 square for 4 long days.
- even with 6 other guys officially helping as part of our exhibitor team, we were still overrun at times
- we had a total of 5 people who identified themselves as lefty players, and most of these were members here at LB
- if I had any doubts about offering a predominately passive lineup in a sea of custom builders giving Fodera a run on fancy woods and electronics, they are totally gone. our booth wasn't filled with guys endlessly slapping a riff in E
![Smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_e_smile.gif)
what we did have was a steady stream of session players and touring pros (who themselves are not household names, but who support big name acts) stopping in to say that it's refreshing to see a builder that actually gets it
- passive 4-string P & J styled basses easily outsold everything else by 5:1 with the exception of our new Malibu model which was even with the 4's
- I sold more guitars (orders placed) than basses this year, and the trend continues in the first week post NAMM
- our dealer pricing model was embraced by 11 new dealers (consequently, you'll probably see even less of me online this year)
and lastly, I think NAMM 2014 revealed that we have found our niche in the market - players making instruments for players, building the tools depended upon to deliver sonically and ergonomically, and that actually get used in high profile sessions
I have a great team working with me at RGW, and I simply could not have done this without them
all the best,
R