Baden Guitars IN Business?

[Strings4Him]

Does anyone know if Baden Guitars went out of business?  Their website domain is no longer active and prior email addresses have been returned undeliverable.

[gitnoob]

Wow; they appear to have quietly shut down.    Their last twitter entry was in June, and people were complaining that their phone was disconnected in July.

[ducktrapper]

Well think about it. They were making a plain Jane guitar, IN VIET NAM, similar to the 01 style JCL sometimes made and attempting to sell them for three times as much as JCL did with their N.A. made models. I'm not saying they weren't nice guitars but I'd question the business model.   

[bluesman67]

Obviously a lot of folks felt that way, too pricey for Vietnam built. not to mention the Gumby dread.

[Strings4Him]

I agree about their dread model, but the A-style model is quite good.  After the economy went south, so did their prices.

I hope we get a definitive explanation at some point.

[gitnoob]

I started a thread at AGF figuring a Baden dealer could quickly confirm or deny the death of Baden.    Nothing.

But Ayers did respond that Ayers is still doing well.    (Ayers made the guitars for Baden.)

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=201770

I believe a couple of Larrivee dealers were former Baden dealers.    Maybe one of them will chime in.

[Strings4Him]

Thanks gitnoob.  I really would like to know.

Other than one's political concerns about a guitar coming from Vietnam, no one can deny the quality of these guitars.  For those who own a Baden, their quality and playability are top-notch.

[ducktrapper]

Thanks gitnoob.  I really would like to know.

Other than one's political concerns about a guitar coming from Vietnam, no one can deny the quality of these guitars.  For those who own a Baden, their quality and playability are top-notch.

As has been pointed out, it was the price point, not the quality, that was the deal breaker.

[bluesman67]

As has been pointed out, it was the price point, not the quality, that was the deal breaker.

I agree.  The quality is not questioned.  I've heard from a few who have the cutaway model who really liked it and said the quality was top notch.  It's simply the price point.  They hit the market with a retail over $2k, that's pretty ballsy for an Asian guitar, regardless of how well it's built.  Baden tried to line their pockets with profits and it didn't work.  The CEO or President, or whatever his title, was the marketing guy who built Taylor guitars and he tried to build Baden with marketing but I think the main difference is that Taylor is USA and they built up a loyal customer base before they built their marketing machine, seems like he tried to do the opposite.

[dkoloff]

I had the dred and liked it for something different......at the price point they were selling at was just to high but a quality guitar nonetheless. There are some great buys for them out on the web as that they do not have a great resale price.

[OutWithTheBlue]

hmm...interesting...i kind of want an A style.

[Strings4Him]

I agree that the price point out of the gate was high.  The A-style Mahogany/Cedar originally had a list price of $1,906.  Then the economy hit the skids and the list price went down to $1,299 (for the gloss).  Baden was forced to trim the list price by employing a ship-direct approach.  Once a guitar was ordered, it would literally be shipped from a warehouse in Asia.

So, the intial price-point was high for an Asian import.  But, once the ship-direct approach was used its list price was more well-placed to compete with domestic brands.

Since the list price for the A-style Mahogany/Cedar gloss is $1,299 a MAP price would be about $975.

[ducktrapper]

Out of the gate? Do you represent Baden? To contrast, a Larrivée L-01, built in N.A., from Musicians Friend, sold for under $400.00 with electronics. Baden had a bad business model. Can we close this case?

[Strings4Him]

Out of the gate? Do you represent Baden? To contrast, a Larrivée L-01, built in N.A., from Musicians Friend, sold for under $400.00 with electronics. Baden had a bad business model. Can we close this case?

When did the Larrivee L-01 sell for $400?  What year?

I don't represent Baden, otherwise I would have not asked my original question regarding their current business situation.

I love my Larrivee's, for sure, but I am merely trying to convey that Baden's adjusted strategy was a wise one that ultimately saved the consumer money.

I own an A-style Cedar/Mahogany gloss model.

[ducktrapper]

I'm glad you like the guitar.

[petevee]

Wow, so they are gone???

[Strings4Him]

Wow, so they are gone???

It seems so.  I can't get any information from anyone.  It would be nice if someone from Baden would provide some info, especially for those who bought a Baden guitar.  If no info comes, then that is simply poor business etiquette.

[ffinke]

My biggest concern is for the people who paid the higher price because THEY GOT THE WARRANTY! We tell people that if they don't care about the warranty, buy used and save money! If it was a good guitar it should have been positioned to take advantage of the quality. Apparently some over-zealous marketeers got in the mix.

[Strings4Him]

My biggest concern is for the people who paid the higher price because THEY GOT THE WARRANTY! We tell people that if they don't care about the warranty, buy used and save money! If it was a good guitar it should have been positioned to take advantage of the quality. Apparently some over-zealous marketeers got in the mix.

True.  A warranty is only as good as the company that offers it.  Your advice is sound.  I will definitely consider this in the future.

[ffinke]

Wow, so they are gone???

This is what you get when you look for them as a business: http://badenguitars.com/

And from something else I saw, they've only been around a short while? First NAMM rollout was 2007. They must not have polished the crystal ball either!

f