SHOWMAN

With so many shows not taking place this year due to COVID-19, what can be done to help the industry when they re-emerge in 2021.

 

That's a huge question.

Firstly, I would distinguish between manufacturers and dealers. Then I would distinguish between serious engineering-based manufacturers and those more in the male jewellery business and purveyors of snake-oil.

Bricks & mortar dealers I suspect are in the longer term an endangered species, and Covid-19 will drive many if not most to extinction unless they have something special to add value over buying used or on-line. My view is that traditional dealers have outlived their usefulness as they don't offer proper technically based advice, rarely have their own service facilities, and in any case can't have a wide enough range of items in stock to allow meaningful comparisons. As someone who has bought HiFi totally on specifications without listening to anything first over the past 40+ years, I've not seen the point of dealers.

As to manufacturers, that's also a difficult one as some actually provide good quality at sensible prices, sadly most of them manufacture in China, rarely now in the Europe or North America. Those that do tend to be at the High-end, of price and not of performance which will be no better than something cheap from China, and often technically worse, such as any valve amplifier or 'boutique' loudspeaker.

As to those manufacturers who sell snake-oil products, male jewellery or technically flawed products, the sooner they disappear the better.

Having spent my whole career in the audio business, albeit almost totally in the pro-audio broadcast industry, I've become totally disillusioned with the way the HiFi industry has gone from a technically-based to fashion and subjectively based activity, so I for one won't be surprised or particularly saddened if a large part of it goes away. What I will be sad about is if the part that goes away is the few technically-based activities leaving the fashion and snake-oil.

S.

 

Thanks, lots to consider here, this industry is never short of passion, which to some extent makes it what it is.
By Industry I meant all the elements of the chain including Distributors of course, as without them many products would not find there way to market, and they represent the majority of Exhibitors at shows
I will look forward to other input and ideas.