Why Sell Other Manufacturers' Turntables?
What's that about?
You might think it's curious that a turntable manufacturer would sell products manufactured by his competitors.
We thought so, and resisted for quite some time.
Ultimately, this came down to choices, and witnessing how Galibier has evolved over the years.
As a designer of no-compromise turntables, one thing we've held to be non-negotiable is local control and manufacture of all critical components. Quality cannot be maintained without a "man on the ground".
This rules out the cost advantages of manufacturing in Eastern Europe and Asia, and along with it, the ability to compete at lower price points.
Competing ...
Our Serac experiment in the late 2000's was a technological success but a marketing failure. The bill of materials mandated that we choose between cosmetics that "wow" the audiophile and performance. We chose performance. The turntable didn't sell.
We got smarter over the years, and periodically returned to the project. The answer was always the same.
Evolution and a Bolt of Realization Strikes
As a small manufacturer, we wear multiple hats throughout the day.
In addition to designing, and shepherding products into production, a good part of our day is spent working with customers and advising them on configuring their systems.
In support of this, we brought on product lines from cartridge and tonearm manufacturers for whom we have great respect.
In working with perspective clients, we periodically addressed the question: "what would you purchase at a lower price point than your Stelvio and Gavia turntables?"
The answer was Feickert and Kuzma. With over 20 years' design and manufacturing experience, we're uniquely positioned to both make these evaluations as well as to guide our clients toward compatible products.
You know the rest of this story.
Experience and Fulfillment
At the heart of it, we're people persons, and as we introspected about this, we realized we could touch more lives if we applied the knowledge gained in our decades long vinyl journey to working more with clients and less in the shop.
This meshed perfectly with bringing the Feickert and Kuzma line onboard.
The urge to create is strong with us however, and this will never fade. We have no choice, because that's how we're built. As a mentor once put it to me: "create or die".
So, we continue to assault what is possible in vinyl playback, but at the same time will work with you on alternatives that may better suit your requirements.
