# Why is importing/exporting guitars forbidden? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 30, 2006, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-importing-exporting-guitars-forbidden/342250 "2006-01-30T19:43:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Azadeh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/cab0a1/32.png) [@Azadeh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Azadeh)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-importing-exporting-guitars-forbidden/342250/1 "2006-01-30T19:43:57Z")
I was going through various forums and shops trying to find a shop that would import a guitar for me (a Japan-only variant of ESP’s Eclipse model), and found that importing/exporting guitars is apparently quite frowned upon. I read that > [@](#): > > Official ESP retailers in the US are forbidden from shipping guitars into the UK as they risk losing their dealerships completely. and I was wondering if anyone knows why this is so? It’s not just US-\>UK, this also seems to apply to Japan-\>US. I can’t think of a really good reason other than the possibility of driving up prices for artist signature models (for instance trying to up the price of a Metallica guitar to be sold to a country with a larger/smaller fanbase) or something like that. And if you happen to know of any shops that are willing to import and ship… 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-importing-exporting-guitars-forbidden/342250/2 "2006-01-30T19:51:08Z")
Just a WAG on my part, but it may have something to do with the wood (and any potential “little passengers” _in_ the wood). Other than that, I got nothin’. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-importing-exporting-guitars-forbidden/342250/3 "2006-01-30T19:52:01Z")
I guess, based on the wording of the clause you post, that it’s not a prohibition imposed by a government but a contractual obligation included in ther contract between ESP and its dealers. Maybe those guitars are sold at higher prices in the US than elsewhere, and the manufacturer wants to avoid re-imports of cheaper exported guitars. But just a WAG. ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-importing-exporting-guitars-forbidden/342250/4 "2006-01-30T20:01:07Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > I guess, based on the wording of the clause you post, that it’s not a prohibition imposed by a government but a contractual obligation included in ther contract between ESP and its dealers. Maybe those guitars are sold at higher prices in the US than elsewhere, and the manufacturer wants to avoid re-imports of cheaper exported guitars. > > But just a WAG. I’m with **Schnitte**. Here are the only US limitations on shipping guitars that I could find: > [@](#): > > Do I need a permit to import or export my guitar? Some guitars contain wildife, such as mother-of-pearl. If you are importing your personal guitar that contains wildlife as accompanying baggage, you must declare the item on the Customs declaration form. Click here for information if you are commercially importing or exporting guitars that contain wildlife or if you are separately shipping your personal guitar that contains wildlife. > > Some guitars also contain Brazilian rosewood (Dalbergia nigra). This species is listed in CITES Appendix I, and may not be traded for commercial purposes. However, exceptions can be made for guitars that qualify as pre-Convention, i.e., contain rosewood that was obtained prior to June 11, 1992. Click here for an application form to export or re-export pre-Convention guitars. The guitar must enter or exit the United States through a plant designated port. Check with APHIS, the State, and foreign country to meet their requirements. [http://www.fws.gov/permits/faqs/FaqFGH.shtml](http://www.fws.gov/permits/faqs/FaqFGH.shtml) ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-importing-exporting-guitars-forbidden/342250/5 "2006-01-30T20:06:36Z")
ESP’s [FAQs](http://www.espguitars.com/support_faqs.htm#12) include this: > [@](#): > > **Are the models shown on the ESP Japan website available for sale in the USA?** > No, the only models shown on this website are available for sale in the USA. Models available in other countries are only available for those markets. I think there is a grammatical error here, because it doesn’t make sense, and they meant to say: No, only the models shown on this website are available for sale in the USA. Models available in other countries are only available for those markets. So the reason appears to be that they want to strictly control how their axes are marketed. (Camera companies distinguish equipment made for specific markets, but but they do not outright prohibit selling in another market. There may be warranty issues, though. This is called “gray market” and there are probably a jillion Google hits on that.) ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-importing-exporting-guitars-forbidden/342250/6 "2006-01-30T20:48:46Z")
Guitar manufacturers are noted for imposing rather arbitrary and restrictive contracts on their official dealers. When I bought a Taylor, the company was enforcing a clause that their retail dealers could not advertise prices for new Taylors on the web. The dealers were annoyed as hell about it, but there wasn’t much they could do. Taylor seems to have since relented, but that sort of thing seems common for the business. In general, “name” manufacturers of low volume specialty type merchandise often seem to get dictatorial with their dealers. ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-importing-exporting-guitars-forbidden/342250/7 "2006-01-30T21:24:23Z")
This is mostly a manufacturers restriction. The profit margins in the music game are large, there is never a shortage of folk wanting a slice of the action so importers can set the conditions of sale they want, things like not allowing any returns back to the manufacturer at all, so the end seller having to carry all the burden of warranty returns is not unusual. The guitar industry is not particularly fragmented either, it is dominated by two or three huge major players that have several differant brands, so that Jackson, Charvell, and the cheapo Hondo are all part of the same group Samick, despite catering to vastly differing markets. In the case of Samick they also own a lot of other brands such as Kahler, Gorilla, Grover etc along with a wide range of other electronic devices, so if you upset this conglomerate, not only do you lose the right to sell their guitars, you also lose the right to sell a huge range of other stuff too, which could easily mean the end of your business. Floyd Rose and Kahler, despite appearing to be competing for the same market, are not as far apart from each other as you might think. Guitars are very much cheaper in the US than the UK, and the manufacturers have artificially hyped up prices here, by at least one third higher for the same spec instrument, and this sets up a situation that is ripe for parallel imports and grey imports. Any dealer found out soon finds they can’t get stock from anywhere at all, the big manufacturers somehow seem to not be able to sell to anyone who has upset one of the other big manufacturers. What I’m really saying is that in many ways, the musical instrument industry operates like a cartel, they do not compete as aggressively against each other as you might suppose, smaller manufacturers that do well don’t tend to stay independant for long, they get bought out. Those smaller custom makers may be very well known, but in terms of the value of goods they shift, its a vanishingly small percentage compared to the big manufacturers. Some seemingly competing brands are made in the same factories in places such as Korea, but they are made for differant music merchandising corperations, examples such as, The largest guitar maker Samick have been badging their guitars as “Epiphone/Gibson”, “Washburn”, “Hamer”, “Slammer”, “Kima”, “Danelectro”, “Archer”, “Ibanez”, “Rogue”, “Hohner”, “Slammer”, “Memphis”, “Montana”, “Grand”, “Dean”, “Johnson”, “Commodore”, “Hondo”, “Cruise”, “Kramer”, “Karera”, “Sterling”, “Lyon”, “Mitchell”, “Music Drive”, “Santa Rosa”, “Jay Turser”, “DeArmond”, “Abilene”, “Shredder”, “Sigma”, “Sebring”, “Eagle”, “Rokker”, “Joshua”, “Mr. Potato” That list would give many guitarists a bit of a shock, all those names made in just one factory and just one manufacturer shows just what a stranglehold that these companies have and its why they can dictate terms. ---
**Author:** ![diku](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4af34b/32.png) [@diku](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diku)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-importing-exporting-guitars-forbidden/342250/8 "2006-01-30T21:40:56Z")
> [@casdave](#): > > The largest guitar maker Samick have been badging their guitars as “Epiphone/Gibson”, “Washburn”, “Hamer”, “Slammer”, “Kima”, “Danelectro”, “Archer”, “Ibanez”, “Rogue”, “Hohner”, “Slammer”, “Memphis”, “Montana”, “Grand”, “Dean”, “Johnson”, “Commodore”, “Hondo”, “Cruise”, “Kramer”, “Karera”, “Sterling”, “Lyon”, “Mitchell”, “Music Drive”, “Santa Rosa”, “Jay Turser”, “DeArmond”, “Abilene”, “Shredder”, “Sigma”, “Sebring”, “Eagle”, “Rokker”, “Joshua”, “Mr. Potato” With regards to Epiphone and Kramer, they’ve moved away from using Samick and have been making guitars in different plants in Korea and China for the past few years, with a goal of having everything made at an Epiphone plant in China.