Rick: the problem is, I have worked & lived in a variety of places; spent a long time in texas, and come originally from back east.

'Couple years back, at Christmas time, I bought a new Martin DM @ Rockin' Robin in Houston, then got the same % discount offerred to me on a very nice Taylor in Nagcogdoches - a small town - a lot smaller than the 'Balmer area, maybe as small as Catonsville. (Had I known, I would've bought the Taylor, truth be known!)

Some time earlier (that same year, if I remember correctly), Appalachian would've sold me a Seagull for slightly more than I paid for the Martin, & though I like the better Seagulls, I think my new Martin is considerably better yet. (Had to take a heck of a ribbing on stage from friends who know how bitterly unhappy I've been w/Martin in recent years!)

As for my current hometown, it is a larger (BY FAR!) college town than Nagcogdoches, but has very limited access to decent guitar selection or prices. There are several stores in town. None has that great a selection, but in the store which has the nominal best, many "new" instruments that are clearly factory seconds, (in my opinion), full of flaws, (called, I am told a "b-line") hang on the wall at outrageously inflated prices, from which a "discount" still leaves you paying a great deal more than the MSRP at a smaller "ma & pa" type neighborhood store that sells the same brands in Milwaukee, near my brother-in-law's house. That's a small private store that survives well by good relations w/the locals & ALWAYS has a decent discount, off that believable MSRP, on their instruments.

I conclude that our friend who recently quit the music business & went to work for the University was correct in telling me that "real" prices base around 40% off a realistic MSRP. ie, that the pricing structure is pretty much designed that way for most brands. While I can see that a really small, low volume store might have some difficulty, I would think that a store w/the volume & stock of Appalachian ought to be able to do better.

Just 1 man's opinion.

Cheers, BK