So, a while back I was searching around for a good general-purpose Baroque violin bow... and there was a colleague who had a couple of bows sent to him from a Brazilian bowmaker. I think that this colleague had asked for a single bow to be made for him (which he loves...), but the bowmaker sent a few more to try and promote his work.
It is a sort of a weird gesture... especially when it isn't asked for. And it meant that he had a couple of bows that he was trying to sell whilst living in a remote town and also without commission. Anyway, I wanted to try them... and in the end, I did like the bows, but they weren't the ones that I was looking for at this point in time... they were fast, agile, and responsive... all things that I like and look for in a bow... but the balance wasn't right for general purpose sonata bow, much better for dance... and the tone that they produced was not quite as grounded in the fundamental tone as I would have preferred... again, an offshoot of the preference towards fast response.
Anyway, I offered to show the bows around as our ensemble was putting on a festival and lots of people would be able to try them...
... and in the end, we were able to connect a buyer to each bow!
Which led to the bowmaker contacted us directly and suggesting that we go into an agreement where he sends out a few bows and we would promote and sell them on his behalf for a 10 percent commission.
Initially, it seemed to a decent enough idea... increasing the variety of revenue sources is always a good thing... but after a bit more thought... well, musicians selling stuff is generally pretty dodgy... sure, there are exceptions... but it doesn't usually mesh well.
... then the commission would end up being relatively small in absolute terms in comparison to the hassle of showing them around... and all of that... plus any additional costs that might crop up.
On the plus side, I would have 3 or 4 different bows to play around with until they got sold...
... but in the end, my wife and I agreed... the amount of money that was there to be potentially made wouldn't be worth the effort and the perception of conflict of interest. So, we've decided to politely decline... we are a performance ensemble... and selling equipment is not something that we are planning to do!
... and more recently, I've talked to a luthier who pointed out things about the international trade and shipping of violins and bows... and it is a WHOLE lot more complicated than I would have thought, with potential expensive pitfalls for the unwary!
So... glad we have passed on this!
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