Here are some realities of the business:

1. It is not uncommon for manufacturers to have finished boxed stock at the factory for several months, even a year on some slow moving models and finishes.

2. It is not uncommon for distributors to have boxed stock in their warehouses for several months, even a year on some slow moving models and finishes.

3. It is not uncommon for larger multi-store chains to have boxed stock at their warehouse/distribution centers for several months, even a year on some slow moving models and finishes.

4. Fallow, aged stock is waisted money for all concerned. Manufacturers are cutting slow moving SKUs from their offerings. Distributors are cutting back on the SKUs they order and are fighting for "just in time" inventory. Retailers are becomming, out of necessity, obsessed with inventory turn and weeding out slow moving items.

Last evening I worked with a young family on a new Yamaha C2 that was deeply concerned that the piano was a 2010 model. I tried to explain to them that it was highly unlikely that in the middle of March 2010 that we would have stock that was built in Japan after January 1st. Some quick research showed that the unit was received from YCA on 1-10-2010. Nearly impossible to devine as to when exactly it was actually manufactured. It does bear a very high serial number.

Years ago I sold the last remaining "new" Kimball French Provincial baby grand. It was actually six years old. It had never been sold, rented, loaned, used in a concert, or anything else. It had gone from Kimball to our warehouse for prep and directly to the store. It sat on the showroom floor all that time. It received several floor tunings over that time. When it was sold it was identified as to its age and status and discounted heavily.

It is for these reasons that the industry has evolved to a point of considering stock as "new" or "used".

Bending/distorting the truth or out right lying is never acceptable in any industry. Pianos that have been loaned, rented, or put out for concert use should be identified as such and discounted accordingly. IMHO, new pianos much older than a couple of years should be identified to buyers as such.

The key here, and it has been idenfied in earlier posts, is disclosure. All the dealer has to do is to disclose when the piano was made. It is as simple as that. Such disclosure will avoid misunderstandings and accusations, and will enable any and all dealers to avoid looking like they are trying to put one over on anyone. I think that the vast majority of dealers already disclose this information, and would not try to play word games along the lines of "it's new because it's newly out on MY sales floor." No one should play games like this. If you want to avoid looking like a used car salesman, don't act like one.

As I said earlier in this thread, however, most piano dealers are wonderful people and terrific at their vocation. No one should go in to any major transaction without having done his or her homework, but no one should form a bias about any industry or group based on a couple of bad experiences, either.

I recently deposited money to agree buying a Kawai K5, the dealer (very reputable dealer in my area) told me that it was still in the warehouse out of state and it's new. He wrote "new" under the serial # box under the purchase agreement and kept telling me that it was A stock. I had the impression that he didn't know the serial # because he didn't have the piano in his store yet. A few days after I made the deposit, I started to wondering the actual year of the piano, in my mind I wanted to find out if it was made this year 2010 or last year. He said he would called Kawai to find out the serial # and let me know. With the serial #, I looked it up to be 2007. Since someone here mentioned that w/o knowing the price, it's hard to say if the dealer's practice was questionable. So here it is:

- $6500 including delivery and 8.75% sale tax,
- Polish Sapale Mahagony finish
- Including 2 (not artist) vinyl-top benches with music compartments,
- 3 tunings at my house (one of them can be converted into voicing),
- The piano will be prepped and tuned in store before delivery.

Is the deal/price fair for this piano? It seems to me that when a piano is listed for resale, its age is based on the year it was made; even though it doesn't actually start aging until we play it. Any other advantage for having a piano 3 years older but it wasn't played during those 3 years? Assuming that it's actually A stock. How can I verify if it's an A stock? thanks!

For goodness sake! If you are able to purchase a brand new Kawai K5 SMP with all those additions, you had better hop on it & stop the worrying! If you are still worried about the 2007 manufacture date, simply call Kawai and ask them if the serial number has ever been registered for warranty. It's not at all unusual for the K5 model in that particular finish to be a slow seller. Most people want the ebony polish or satin.

As Steve Cohen said in your other thread about this piano, you are really worrying unnecessarily. You apparently feel confident enough about the piano to have made a deposit & it sounds like your dealer is bending over backwards to get your business. Get the piano & start having some fun!

I echo Nancy's remarks!

I know that sometimes dealers will sell as brand new if the warranty has not yet been registered. This is a great thing if you find that the piano has been in someone elses house meaning that you may get a price break on a wonderful product not to mention the full warranty.
Regards,
Vade Mecum