# Requirements for Getting a Job at a guitar store ?



## Scruffy1012 (Jan 13, 2011)

Hey guys, i was just wondering what the requirements are to get a job at a music store ? I play for 2 local bands, i know every product in their store like the back of my hand, im able to fix most guitar problems, ive had previous work experience and i have good communicational skills.


----------



## drmosh (Jan 13, 2011)

You should ask the guitar store, it's different everywhere. Sounds to me like you would be good at the job, but hate it


----------



## DaveCarter (Jan 13, 2011)

axle1 said:


> ...i know every product in their store like the back of my hand, im able to fix most guitar problems, ive had previous work experience and i have good communicational skills.



^ This. Ive worked in a couple of music shops before and that just about covers it! If you can provide accurate, helpful information about everything that they sell, plus have some tech skills, past experience and a friendly service manner then Id say you tick all the boxes. Best of luck!


----------



## Scruffy1012 (Jan 13, 2011)

drmosh said:


> You should ask the guitar store, it's different everywhere. Sounds to me like you would be good at the job, but hate it


 Lol why would i hate it ?


----------



## Scar Symmetry (Jan 13, 2011)

Being a douche.


----------



## Scruffy1012 (Jan 13, 2011)

Scar Symmetry said:


> Being a douche.


 lol? Alright champion.


----------



## Scar Symmetry (Jan 13, 2011)

axle1 said:


> lol? Alright champion.



Seriously, every guitar store I have ever been to has had nothing but arrogant, uninformed idiots working there, trying to sell you shit that you know more about than they do. Once this guy tried making up LTD models and saying I wouldn't of heard of them, what a dick. He even insisted that some LTDs were made of woods that they were NOT made of. He probably thought he was really clever. Either that or I got real-world trolled.


----------



## Varcolac (Jan 13, 2011)

axle1 said:


> lol? Alright champion.



You would hate it because despite your love of music and knowledge of gear, you aren't there to personalise their sound or get them the best gear for their money. You're there to push product, and hard-sell the most profitable items. You're not going to suggest they mod their own tubescreamer, you're going to flog them a more expensive one. You're not going to personalize their string gauge to thheir tuning and sound, you're going to hand them a pack of d'addarios and charge top dollar. You're not going to recommend local luthiers to get the best value for money and customer service, you'll push Fender and Ibanez down their throats because you make a better margin on it. 

You'll be a douche, and you'll hate it, because if you don't do all of the above you're not doing your job.


----------



## scherzo1928 (Jan 13, 2011)

besides:


----------



## signalgrey (Jan 13, 2011)

im thinking of people who worked at the Guitar Center near my parents in NY.....ugh. fucking idiots. and none of them are musicians.


----------



## cwhitey2 (Jan 13, 2011)

I go to Guitar Center and ask random dumb questions (sometimes hard ones) that i already know the answer to just to see what they will say. The GC near my house is actually not that bad. I mean they still try to push certain products, they know their shit. 


Just be nice and sell stuff and you wont have a problem.


----------



## Scruffy1012 (Jan 13, 2011)

Scar Symmetry said:


> Seriously, every guitar store I have ever been to has had nothing but arrogant, uninformed idiots working there, trying to sell you shit that you know more about than they do. Once this guy tried making up LTD models and saying I wouldn't of heard of them, what a dick. He even insisted that some LTDs were made of woods that they were NOT made of. He probably thought he was really clever. Either that or I got real-world trolled.


 
Dam, you do have a point. I can see where your coming from, Ive been looking into gettting a 6505, when i went into a store the guy said there was no such thing and that peavey never made a 5150 or a 6505. He said for metal i should look at a fender deville.


----------



## tacotiklah (Jan 13, 2011)

scherzo1928 said:


> besides:




I fucking love that guy. 


Do you have any experience working in retail? (ie walmart, target, etc)
That's a big plus if you do and have a good reference from them.


----------



## Scar Symmetry (Jan 13, 2011)

axle1 said:


> Dam, you do have a point. I can see where your coming from, Ive been looking into gettting a 6505, when i went into a store the guy said there was no such thing and that peavey never made a 5150 or a 6505. He said for metal i should look at a fender deville.



I believe you, because you couldn't make this shit up 

Only someone that works in a guitar store would insist on something that is indisputably true.


----------



## tacotiklah (Jan 13, 2011)

axle1 said:


> Dam, you do have a point. I can see where your coming from, Ive been looking into gettting a 6505, when i went into a store the guy said there was no such thing and that peavey never made a 5150 or a 6505. He said for metal i should look at a fender deville.



I'm pretty sure you got real-life trolled or else the dude had to be older than dirt, therefore his idea of aggressive, edgy metal is Elvis Presley....


----------



## WarriorOfMetal (Jan 13, 2011)

Varcolac said:


> You would hate it because despite your love of music and knowledge of gear, you aren't there to personalise their sound or get them the best gear for their money. You're there to push product, and hard-sell the most profitable items. You're not going to suggest they mod their own tubescreamer, you're going to flog them a more expensive one. You're not going to personalize their string gauge to thheir tuning and sound, you're going to hand them a pack of d'addarios and charge top dollar. You're not going to recommend local luthiers to get the best value for money and customer service, you'll push Fender and Ibanez down their throats because you make a better margin on it.
> 
> You'll be a douche, and you'll hate it, because if you don't do all of the above you're not doing your job.




I work at a guitar store, and do most of the things you're saying he won't. I'm one of the top guys in the store, too.


----------



## DaveCarter (Jan 13, 2011)

I feel sorry for people who have to put up with pricks like that. The staff at my local music shop (Allegro Music in Chelmsford, GO THERE) are incredibly helpful and know an insane amount about gear. Theyre both really friendly guys and one in particular has a great sense of humour; I was looking at straps once and he came up and offered me this multi-coloured fluffy strap, saying it was genuine muppet skin, then when I laughed he said "Its not funny, 12 muppets died to make this"  Ive phoned up asking about replacement Ibanez bridges before and they had a ridiculous amount of insight on getting custom bridges machined and installed, rather than trying to get me to order a branded product through them. Same as when I go there for strings, theyre happy to suggest custom sets based on my tuning and scale length. 

So hopefully these guys prove that there are in fact some decent guitar shop employees out there. I hope youre more like them and less like some of the douches mentioned in the rest of the thread!


----------



## groph (Jan 13, 2011)

Scar Symmetry said:


> Being a douche.


 
This.

1. Espouse the virtues of Line 6 Spiders. Recommend them to every 13 year old Metallica shirt wearing boy who walks into the store.

2. Disregard string gauges larger than .049 Give weird looks to people who suggest otherwise.

3. Disregard tunings lower than Drop D. Treat Drop D with haughty disdain. Give weird looks to people who suggest otherwise.

4. Learn the phrase: "SEVEN strings? PFFT!"

5. Immediately jump in on the business of customers trying gear out. Snatch the gear from their hands and start playing, in an obvious attempt to sell something.

But really though, ask the store.


----------



## TXDeathMetal (Jan 13, 2011)

> 1. Espouse the virtues of Line 6 Spiders. Recommend them to every 13 year old Metallica shirt wearing boy who walks into the store.
> 
> 2. Disregard string gauges larger than .049 Give weird looks to people who suggest otherwise.
> 
> ...



One, some or all of these things will happen on any given day on any given trip to any given Guitar Center.


----------



## stryker1800 (Jan 13, 2011)

My guitar center really isn't bad for the most part, i dont know about the drum room but the guitar guys are 99% good and the pro audio guys are cool as shit. My only issue is because of the area we don't get much interesting stuff work buying or looking at.


----------



## Scar Symmetry (Jan 14, 2011)

groph said:


> This.
> 
> 1. Espouse the virtues of Line 6 Spiders. Recommend them to every 13 year old Metallica shirt wearing boy who walks into the store.
> 
> ...





To add: "SEVEN strings? PFFT! *turns and laughs to his colleagues like the immense prick the store worker is* ... you might as well play a bass! FAG!" The last word is not said, but it is intended.


----------



## drmosh (Jan 14, 2011)

Scar Symmetry said:


> To add: "SEVEN strings? PFFT! *turns and laughs to his colleagues like the immense prick the store worker is* ... you might as well play a bass! FAG!" The last word is not said, but it is intended.



Luckily there is a guy in the local store that totally knows his shit, especially about the metal direction. Never arrogant and willing to help.

If someone does get pissy and laugh at something in the vein of what you said, I ask them in all seriousness that if they are so damn amazing and know everything, why are they working in a retail store.


----------



## Scar Symmetry (Jan 14, 2011)

It didn't happen to me, it happened to my brother, but the worst part was that it wasn't some arrogant kid, it was a tech in his late 30s


----------



## DaveCarter (Jan 14, 2011)

^Thats not surprising really, I find the younger guys in stores are generally more in touch with modern music, as you'd image. Even if they wont play 7s themselves they at least understand what theyre for. There'll be a few exceptions of course, but personally when Ive encountered cringeworthy ignorance of 7/8s its always been from middle-aged classic rock types, often in the wonderfully overrated Denmark Street.


----------



## Varcolac (Jan 14, 2011)

DaveCarter said:


> ^Thats not surprising really, I find the younger guys in stores are generally more in touch with modern music, as you'd image. Even if they wont play 7s themselves they at least understand what theyre for. There'll be a few exceptions of course, but personally when Ive encountered cringeworthy ignorance of 7/8s its always been from middle-aged classic rock types, often in the wonderfully overrated Denmark Street.



To work in Denmark Street you really need a whole new level of terribleness though. There's some tech guy there who I asked about putting banjo/mandolin frets on my fretless, and he attempted to convince me that I wanted super-jumbo xxl frets. There's a tech above another shop who installed the piezo on my double bass, but I still wouldn't trust anyone on that street to work on anything invented after about 1960.


----------



## rectifryer (Jan 14, 2011)

I dont know what to say. The two closest music stores to me know and love bands like periphery and AAL. I can go in there and bullshit with those guys for quite a while. 

You dont have to work at a chain. You can try to find the "right" store to work at.


----------



## clouds (Jan 14, 2011)

axle1 said:


> the guy said there was no such thing and that peavey never made a 5150 or a 6505. He said for metal i should look at a fender deville.


----------



## AK DRAGON (Jan 14, 2011)

Scar Symmetry said:


> Being a douche.



I beleive that's a requirement if you apply @ GC


----------



## Rook (Jan 15, 2011)

OP sounds like you'd be good for the job, it seems a lot of the time it's first come first serve with these jobs. People quite often have friends etc who they'll get in before actually paying attention to random guys lol.

I think it's a real shame reading all the stuff on here people say about guitar shop workers though I've experienced my fair share of douchey staff in other stores.

I hope nobody thinks all this bad stuff about me :-S


----------



## Bekanor (Jan 16, 2011)

I don't get nearly as annoyed by the younger guys who just don't know shit for lack of research as I do by the washed up, cover band heroes who don't know shit out of arrogant disdain for anything made in the last 3 decades.


----------



## anarki (Jan 17, 2011)

1 be a failed musician

2 pick the shittiest guitar in the world and then tell every one you meet that its the only thing worth playing of for obscure reasons

3 be an asshole

4 be a bigger asshole to people who dont know much about guitars

5 be an asshole (again)


----------



## CrushingAnvil (Jan 17, 2011)

Scar Symmetry said:


> To add: "SEVEN strings? PFFT! *turns and laughs to his colleagues like the immense prick the store worker is* ... you might as well play a bass! FAG!" The last word is not said, but it is intended.



I'm waiting for someone to say that to me so I can reply with:

"How about I snip my old .65 off my Stealth 7 string and insert it under your skin in your sleep?"

I think music stores are different everywhere but the one I went to:

Hippy guitar guy who pretty much is working the job I should have  : What guitar do you play mang?

Me: I have a Stealth 7 string

Hippy: Ohhhhhh...7 strings eh? extreme

Me: Yeeahhhh... (the irony is, I do play extreme metal with it )


----------



## CrushingAnvil (Jan 17, 2011)

Bekanor said:


> I don't get nearly as annoyed by the younger guys who just don't know shit for lack of research as I do by the washed up, cover band heroes who don't know shit out of arrogant disdain for anything made in the last 3 decades.



This. Although it's annoying having to assert your own superiority over some scenester in order for them to shut the hell up and let me try X-piece of gear out.


----------



## heilarkyguitar (Jan 17, 2011)

axle1 said:


> Dam, you do have a point. I can see where your coming from, Ive been looking into gettting a 6505, when i went into a store the guy said there was no such thing and that peavey never made a 5150 or a 6505. He said for metal i should look at a fender deville.


 thats funny


----------



## gunshow86de (Jan 17, 2011)

This thread isn't serious is it? There are NO requirements to work at a guitar store, at least a large chain one. I went in to GC today and asked some woman (yes I know, there's my problem right there) if they carried a multi-tool for guitars (you know, the fold out kind with screwdrivers and Allen-keys). She looked at me blankly, "tools? for guitars? You mean like polish and stuff?" 

I didn't wanna be a dick and ask if a man could help me, so I just looked through the entire accessories wall myself. The whole time she was going, "uh, I think I've seen one before," while pretending to look too. 

I've learned just to order stuff online.


----------



## bostjan (Jan 18, 2011)

I don't think there is a single music store on Earth that requires any sort of education, and probably not many that require experience.

If you have a "salesman" personality, then you should be all set. The reason they will be paying you is to sell stuff to people. All it takes to do this is either

a) Have what they want.
b) If you don't have what they want, make them want something that you do have.
c) If you cannot convince them to want something else, and do not have something close enough, then quickly divert your attention to someone else.

I was not a very successful saleman, was because I just didn't feel right using stretegy b.


----------



## JP Universe (May 27, 2011)

As long as you can put up with hearing stairway to heaven and smoke on the water 50 times a day you will be fine.....


----------



## -42- (May 27, 2011)

Am I the _only_ person on this forum to have positive interactions with guitar store employees?


----------



## Hemi-Powered Drone (May 27, 2011)

I just applied to work in the Musical Instrument section at Best Buys and the only requirement, if I remember correctly, was to know how to play guitar, bass, drums, or keyboard. It also recommends experience in a band, but is not mandatory.

I think anyone who uses this site is qualified.


----------



## tacotiklah (May 27, 2011)

dragonblade629 said:


> I just applied to work in the Musical Instrument section at Best Buys and the only requirement, if I remember correctly, was to know how to play guitar, bass, drums, or keyboard. It also recommends experience in a band, but is not mandatory.
> *
> I think anyone who uses this site is qualified*.



Giving us a little too much credit, don't ya think?


----------



## Hemi-Powered Drone (May 27, 2011)

ghstofperdition said:


> Giving us a little too much credit, don't ya think?



It just says you need to play it. It doesn't say you have to play it well.


----------



## Infinite Recursion (May 28, 2011)

I've had nothing but good experiences with the guys at my local music store. Some of them are quite nice and helpful. Chain stores like GC may be different but you don't have to be a douche to sell guitars.


----------



## leonardo7 (May 28, 2011)

If your trying to get a job at Guitar Center then the main requirement is to be able to do the following 2 things: 


Requirement #1
When someone calls the store and gets you on the phone and asks you a simple question you should be able to answer such as "do you have a boss NS2 in stock" or "how much is a Peavy 6505", you will need to say "can I get your number man, I will find that out for you and I will call you back asap" 

Requirement #2
Make sure not to call that person back ever!!!

If you can do those two things then your good to go!


----------



## Rook (May 28, 2011)

Holy thread bump batman!

Though I will add, whatever you think you know about guitars and particular specific products gets shit on as soon as you're in a shop situation. Most people don't want metal guitars, and every day you get asked the most incredibly stupid questions about one tiny little insignificant detail if a guitar.

I guy tried some fenders out, a tele and a Strat, he just wanted something to learn on instead of his acoustic an had a bit of money so was looking at the USA Standard stuff. Loved the strat, wasn't fussed about the neck or sound of the Tele's at all. Went away for lunch and said the dreaded 'my friend plays guitar so I'll ask him what he thinks', as if that affects the dude's taste somehow, but ok sure it's only his second guitar and it's gunna cost him - I get it.
He comes back half an hour later after his coffee and phonecall and asks about the nut. 'The nut?', I said. 'yes, my friend said the nut on a telecaster is better', at this point he points to the bridge. I explain what the nut and bridge are, what they do, and how the USA Standards use similar nuts and bridge setups (saddlewise, the strat obviously has a trem but I said I'd lie it flat on the body so it'd stay in tune better when restringing). 'Ok', he says after the dumbed down explanation 'but my friend says the nut on a tele is better and makes the guitar sound better'.
'but you preferred the sound of the Strat didn't you?'
'yeah but I don't want this nut thing to be an issue'
'[another long, dumbed down explanation of what nuts do...]'
'I better take the tele to be safe'


50% of customers are like this. I appreciate there are hundreds of very knowledgable guitarists, such as those on this forum, but a huge portion of customers either know absolutely nothing (in which case I love to help if they want it!), or are the younger teenage mob who bring their friends in and ask to use or 'practise rooms' and just sit playing cheesy metal riffs for an hour before leaving and never buying anything.


Wow had a bit of a rant there, lol, but yeah all I'm saying is 90% of customers aren't super clued in about what they want, and really do leave it to you to make decisions for them. 

I forgot where I'm going with this...

I loved working in a shop, and probably will do again, but I dint think you have to be a douche. If you're knowledgable and friendly and willing to explain what you see as simple details in really basic terms for ages then you'll be great in a shop. You do have to sell stuff though.


And the guy who made a joke about selling line 6 spiders to Metallica kids, there's no better amp under £100 for a kid who's just learning and wants to rock out to a bit of metal. Things like the Blackstar HT stuff is £400, a lot of money for a parent who won't actually hear the benefit. Also considering at least half the kids that want to learn at 11 or 12 will have given up by the time they turn 18...


----------



## Curt (May 28, 2011)

I have never worked in a chain store, and I am currently working at our local music store which mostly stocks used stuff and pretty much all the cheap stuff electric guitar and amp wise. and very little of the expensive stuff, but when we get in a nice piece of gear and someone asks, I always try to help them make an informed decision rather than keep the "best seller" moving. as we don't really have a "best seller" here. Reminds me of time I was looking around in this shop ages ago and they had a used BC Rich Handmade Warlock and I sat there and played it for hours(I had just been playing for a year or two at this point. YIKES) and they wanted like 1800 for it and I could not for the life of me figure out why they wanted so much more for that than the "NJ" warlock that they wanted like 450 for and why they were trying to convince me to go for the NJ instead. 

I didn't know what I wanted then, and they knew a whole lot more about the differences than I did. I really appreciated that in the long run, and now I work for the place.


----------



## shredguitar7 (May 28, 2011)

i generally dont even bother with stores... they always have 2 7 strings, one a beat up ibanez gio way over priced and a squier strat 7 string in grey... i swear its standard stock just so they can say they carry it. 8 string, wtf is that ???

on a side note, my local shop called Bob's Music is a good store. i get my strings and picks their. they all know me by name and are nice dudes.. SUPPORT THE LITTLE GUYS !!!


----------



## Blind Theory (May 29, 2011)

I don't go to my GC because a block away is another shop that kicks its ass. Those guys are really cool. They let you try shit out. They always keep a few 8's in stock (RG2228's) and 7's (Ibby, Jackson...). They have a lot of metal based stuff and are more geared towards that. But that store is about 40 minutes away. The ones in my town are horrible. Both are run by old guys in their 50's/60's and they know nothing about metal. At one I asked if they carried any cases for flying V shaped guitars and he laughed at me. The other one I asked if they carried sets of 7 string strings and he looked at me really weird (they had them it was just awkward to be looked at like that). One only carries extremely low end electric guitars (the brand axl) and the other carries Fender and Ibanez (although the Ibby's are all Gio's). They do have some decent half stacks there though...but that is it. So not horrible but not very awesome. Shit, my USA RC7 was from a store an hour away because it was the closest store that carried anything of worth as far as what I wanted.


----------



## nothingleft09 (May 30, 2011)

AK DRAGON said:


> I beleive that's a requirement if you apply @ GC


 


anarki said:


> 1 be a failed musician
> 
> 2 pick the shittiest guitar in the world and then tell every one you meet that its the only thing worth playing of for obscure reasons
> 
> ...


 
These are all requirements to work at GC. I used to walk into GC in Fort Wayne, Indiana and my FRIEND was the Guitar department manager and I knew as much as HE did about the shit they had in the store (He was a rarity in a GC) and still couldn't get hired. It personally kills me when the accesories guy looks at you like an idiot when you ask for a set of DR10's in the 7 string set.


----------



## Stealthdjentstic (May 30, 2011)

ghstofperdition said:


> Giving us a little too much credit, don't ya think?



Nah, bring on the Shono.

But honestly, not everyone working at guitar stores are assholes. Local shops are usually friendly, its just chain stores that seem to have that issue.


----------



## nothingleft09 (May 30, 2011)

Definitely agree with that. Although, there is always that one local store with the guy who used to be a session player or toured a while and thinks he's better than everyone else and has the right to be a dick if you can't smoke his ass on an instrument, but if you can, he's still a dick. lol


----------



## Cheesebuiscut (May 30, 2011)

Btw, I too have had many bad guitar center experiences but more recently there seems to be fresh faces that have a completely different mindset.

Honestly its mostly the last generation of employees that are wild douchebags as far as I've experienced and as those guys are getting phased out for the next generation the new guys are far more knowledgeable and if not then curious and understanding instead of pompous and douchey.

I hadn't been to the gc I bought my first guitar from in years and took a trip there at one point and the experience was completely different. The staff was all different people and more importantly they were all very personable.

Not trying to play devils advocate but you guys who never walk into guitar stores any more might be pleasantly surprised one of these days and I imagine in the coming decades the experiences might make a drastic change.


----------



## nothingleft09 (May 30, 2011)

Cheesebuiscut said:


> Btw, I too have had many bad guitar center experiences but more recently there seems to be fresh faces that have a completely different mindset.
> 
> Honestly its mostly the last generation of employees that are wild douchebags as far as I've experienced and as those guys are getting phased out for the next generation the new guys are far more knowledgeable and if not then curious and understanding instead of pompous and douchey.
> 
> ...


 
For some reason the GC in Fort Wayne sucks for employees. It seems like most of them are just guys who used to work in the mall across the street. There really is only a few good guys in there and if it's their day off, you are screwed. But where i'm at in KY, Soundhouse Music is awesome. Always friendly, always cut you a good deal and ALWAYS know their shit and if they don't, they get online right then and there and look it up.


----------

