Rickenbacker Guitar Strap

[MatthewBrown]

I'm looking for a black Rickenbacker guitar strap. An online search has just told me two things:
1. Cheaper options from US stores can't be purchased because of the licencing arrangements restricting their sale oversease, so it's the same as trying to buy a new Ric from there; and
2. The Australian distributor - the Rickenbacker Asia option - has ceased operation as of 31 Jan 2013!

Does anyone know how to get a Ric Guitar Strap at around the US price rather than the Euro price? Anyone know what might be happening with Australian Ric distribution?

Cheers,
MB.

[johnhall]

Anyone know what might be happening with Australian Ric distribution?

Not quite. They were sold to Yamano Music and all the personnel and goods are in the process of being transferred. Should be business as usual in a day or two. Still, it's temporary until we decide to appoint someone actually in Australia.

[Colonel Sanders]

Thanks Mr Hall.

What is the current road block to have an Australian distributor?

Is it that nobody is lining up at the door or that further market expansion is the last thing you need right now? (which later thing is a nice problem to have).

Personally I find the lack of an Australian distributor is more of an hassle for getting parts than guitar/basses. Ebay "fly by night" sellers of new Ricks do a pretty good job at catering for the "distributorless" countries like Oz. Of course you will have to live without any warranty... Parts are a bit trickier to find.

[johnhall]

Is it that nobody is lining up at the door or that further market expansion is the last thing you need right now? (which later thing is a nice problem to have).

It's the latter. All of the distributors want the line and have driven us crazy with requests for meetings and consideration. Our problem is that we simply don't have enough production capacity to properly service the accounts we already have. We're already pulling some shell games to keep things on track in Europe and I want to see both a reduction in backlog and solid increase in production before we jump back into Australia.

Beyond that, there's a lot of disruption in the Australian music instrument market right now, with many players jockeying for positions in the aftermath of the Billy Hyde bankruptcy and the Jackson's guitar debacle. It's a bit murky as to who will take up the slack and who will fall by the wayside.

[Colonel Sanders]

Beyond that, there's a lot of disruption in the Australian music instrument market right now, with many players jockeying for positions in the aftermath of the Billy Hyde bankruptcy and the Jackson's guitar debacle. It's a bit murky as to who will take up the slack and who will fall by the wayside.

Disruptions indeed. It was sad to see Billy Hyde close. I pity the Australian specialised retail merchants as a whole. They have it though with online shopping.

With the lack of a distributor for a while by the look of it, any chance that australian RIC enthusiast may order parts from the Boutique store?

[Petenbacker]

I would like to love to hear an affirmative to that question! After 30 years as a rickaddict/owner it would be heartening to be able to buy our bits direct. Dear Mr Hall, please throw us a bone! (Actually should read boutique).

[antipodean]

It's a bit murky as to who will take up the slack and who will fall by the wayside.

Totally agree - the whole business from distributors to retail outlets in Australia is in the midst of a perfect storm. Many old business models are failing and new business models are untested, so the uncertainty is going to be with us for some time.