As David Bowie would say: “Chhhaaaachanges.” Lots of change took place regarding this year’s MIAC (Music Industries Association of Canada) and PAL show. Based on the wishes of vendors and exhibitors, the show moved from a late-summer event to a mid-spring affair, but not only the date had changed—the venue had, as well. MIAC was now inviting exhibitors and music enthusiasts to The Direct Energy Centre at Exhibition Place on the western edge of the city’s downtown core —a venue that allowed easier access to the hub of Canada’s largest city and also provided space for both shows to incorporate under one roof. The show attracted about 2,800 dealers.
Also new is the MIAC President and Chairman of the Board, Julio Cotellesso. “It looks like everybody is excited about the new venue and the new date,” he said, shortly after the opening ceremonies took place. A steady stream of music enthusiasts quickly filled the show floor as he spoke. “People wanted a new venue but, most of all, they wanted a new date and most of them wanted May.”
In previous years, Canada’s largest music industries trade show had always been held in mid-late August at a time when many retailers were busy with family obligations or delivering and selling goods in advance of the school season, said Cotellesso. This year’s earlier date was MIAC’s response to these challenges.
He also said the new venue allows would-be attendees to make the trip more easily because of its proximity to the downtown core. “It’s closer to downtown, so some of the shops and the people who work in them and run them want to come down with their wives or their girlfriends,” he said. “There’s something for everybody to do. When we were out at the airport, well, they could sit there and watch the planes take off.”
An example of this was illustrated by Peter Stairs and Terry Ryan of SABIAN Cymbals, who were expecting a drop-in visit from one of their larger clients, Three Days Grace drummer Neil Sanderson. Because the show is closer to downtown, they said, Sanderson, who happened to be home on a short break from touring, could more easily pay them a visit.
Economic Excitement?
The venue and the date change were really of minor concern, however, once exhibitors and vendors were set up to meet the show attendees. As with last year’s MIAC and PAL shows, the economic challenges faced by the industry seemed to be on many minds. In the nine months since the last event, depending upon to which economist you listen, Canada has continued its recessionary devolution or is enjoying a rebounding economic recovery.
“It’s been tough,” said Cotellesso, who earns a living by day as a purchasing director with one of Canada’s larger retailers, Steve’s Music. “You’ve got to work twice as hard to make the same amount of money we did a few years ago. Some of the smaller shops are having a hard time and even some of the bigger ones, but it’s turning around, especially here in Canada. You know, the business is there. You just have to find a different way to go get the business. When somebody walks into one of our locations, and they are a true buyer, then we find a way to sell to them.”
Prominent Panel
With that statement, the MIAC president echoed the sentiment of the panel discussion that took place early on Sunday morning before the show officially opened. The “Leaders to Legends” breakfast seminar began by discussing partnerships within the industry, but the dominating theme that emerged after the hour-long discussion was the need for retailers, as the front line in the industry, to find new ways to engage the customer. In order to maintain and grow in an industry that feeds off the musical passions of consumers, now more than ever they must be attracted to the stores.
“Personally, I’ve never met anybody who didn’t want to play music,” said panel moderator Jim Norris, a long-time musician and a Canadian publisher. “Anybody you ever talk to says ‘I’ve always wanted to play guitar. I’ve always wanted to play the piano.’ Regardless of how old you are, you can always start any time. There’s a huge market there.”
Earlier Norris had mentioned a Yamaha survey indicating that “87 percent of the population wants to learn to play a musical instrument.” His point was that, for music retailers and, by association, manufacturers, to be successful, they must go after those would-be customers, those Saturday-night concert dreamers, and help them feed their desire to learn to make music.
Free beginner lessons in-store for new guitarists or drummers can be enough to get a person into a shop to spend a few bucks and become a part of the music community. If this is done correctly, the panelists agreed, you can create lifelong consumer attachments. “In the retail market, people are everything. Treating people with respect and love” is a key to success as a music retailer, said Steve Edwards of Music City Canada in St. John’s, Newfoundland, where for quite some time there was a constant battle for business between the nine or so music stores that fed a relatively small market. Instead of fighting each other for business, the responsibility of all music retailers is to increase opportunity by getting people to believe they need to play a musical instrument.
“Everyone was just constantly warring and fighting with each other and I never wanted to get involved with that,” he added. “I saw our major opportunity was to band together and grow the community of music.”
The true competition in music retail is not the other retailer, continued Edwards. It’s “skateboards and [Nintendo] DS and everything else that takes kids away from music. And, with adults, it’s whatever their other interests are. To me, there are so many other opportunities to engage the community of music.”
“It’s not about whether people can afford a $3,000 guitar,” he added. “It’s whether they are emotionally prepared to remove $3,000 from their wallet for something that they want. It’s not about affordability; it’s about want. We need to create that need…create that want.”
Panelist Dave Hamilton of Just Drums echoed that sentiment as he offered his thoughts on customer relations. “‘Whatever it takes’ is a strong mantra for us,” he said. “[Customers] will tell you in no uncertain terms what they want or don’t want. My challenge is to get my staff to pay attention on a regular basis—encouraging them to engage and get that reward of a customer coming back.”
The final feeling from the panel discussion and the vendors on the floor of the MIAC and PAL shows focused on the fact that there really is no magic cure to the challenges presented by the economy of 2010. Retailers, distributors and manufacturers must team up and keep the consumer interested in the inherent salvation that lies within music.
“We can choose to survive or we can choose to prosper,” said Dale Kroke, of B&J Music. If all facets of the industry band together, the likelihood of a faster and stronger recovery is greatly enhanced, he added.
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