More local-business fetishization in the
More local-business fetishization in the Daily. We’re sure that Herb David Guitar Studio is a great place to buy musical instruments, but can it really be said that guitar-store chains, along with Starbucks, display a “well-planned insipidness”? “Hang that nondescript watercolor closer to the door…no, something’s not right, we’re still not projecting the right image. It’s got to scream insipid.”
Herb David has been successful even though “other stores offering ethnic and vintage instruments have folded or moved to Detroit.” The writer views its staying power as evidence that “goodwill has triumphed over market forces.” But isn’t it possible that Herb David, described here as “one of the best-known music stores in the world,” is around specifically because of market forces - consumers preferring it to inferior competitors? We’re no free-market libertarian, but sometimes a local business closes up shop for non-sinister reasons.