I've gone to this store a lot because my son's gym is down the street and I love guitars. I've…read morespoken with several employees here, spent a good amount of money here and at other Guitar Centers, and I genuinely want this business to succeed. I appreciate having a store nearby where I can try inventory, grab what I need, or get a guitar set up for a reasonable price. I also appreciate not having a sales associate hovering over me the whole time.
That said, only about one out of every three employees seems genuinely pleasant, helpful, or even remotely interested in customers. The other two often come across like they barely tolerate anyone walking through the door. I try to be empathetic because I know difficult jobs and difficult people are real. I work in schools with kids who struggle with emotional dysregulation, and I've done that work for over twenty years. I understand frustration, burnout, and how unreasonable people can be.
But part of being a professional is not unloading that frustration onto the people who are not causing it. If I'm in your store browsing guitars, spending hard-earned money, asking reasonable questions, and making a polite attempt at conversation, then don't meet that with a sneer, a condescending correction, a blank stare, or obvious annoyance. You do not have to love your job, but you should at least act like you understand that customers are the reason you have one.
And here's something else: it is a terrible look when employees stand around loudly talking about how stupid customers are. I hear that kind of thing almost every time I walk into a Guitar Center. Yes, some customers are difficult. Everyone knows that. But if you work in customer service, then some baseline professionalism is part of the deal. Constant visible contempt, complaining, and bad vibes make people not want to spend money there.
What makes this especially frustrating is that I'm not talking about unreasonable demands, returns, or haggling over junk gear. I'm talking about normal interactions. Guitar Center offers something online retailers cannot: the chance to come in and try gear in person. That should be your advantage. Instead, too often the experience is long lines, snide attitudes, and a general sense that customers are a burden.
Honestly, I've had friendlier, more helpful experiences at local fast food places. That should concern management. I should not feel like I need to minimize all interaction with staff just to avoid being treated like an inconvenience.
I rarely leave angry reviews. This is the kind of thing I might write once in ten years. So this is not casual complaining. Over time I've bent over backward to give Guitar Center the benefit of the doubt, but the employee culture at too many locations is a real problem. And if management does not see that, then management is part of the problem.
To the employees who are helpful, friendly, and professional: you are the reason I still come in at all. You are appreciated. To the others: dealing with people is clearly not your strength, and that becomes the customer's problem every time someone walks through the door.
Guitar Center will not lose customers because people suddenly stopped wanting guitars. It will lose them because too many customers would rather buy something sight unseen from a company with decent service than deal with the attitude in your stores. Signed, a concerned customer.
