If the instrument is good, does the maker matter to you?

Great responses. I've enjoyed reading these.

As someone noted, there's a lot of good ukes in the market these days, so it would seem like other factors would come into play more often as to which instrument is chosen.
For me, other factors do come into play. Reputation of the company and more importantly my personal dealings with them absolutely do influence my purchases as well as my support or lack thereof for them.

Rob Uker said:

If in your email to them you were questioning there religious or political inclinations, I wouldn't reply back to you either.

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Nope. I wasn't. It was simple product questions that could've been answered in a sentence of two.

bearbike137 said:

Ideally, I love finding great ukes, by respectable builders, at honorable music stores.

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:agree: Absolutely.

My reply will be a bit off-the-wall here as I took the title question of the thread to have a different meaning then how it was proposed in your opening post. In other words, I am responding to the title of the thread as I understood it before reading the content of the opening post. So I submit this with deference.

Yes. The make does matter to me. My first uke was a Chinese-made Teton solid-wood concert uke. It was a good uke. The intonation was excellent. It was not loud, but not overly quiet either. The action was fantastic and it was eminently playable. But I never really bonded to it and gave it away. It is gathering dust in my son's closet now. I always had it in the back of my mind that it was a cheap, made-in-china ukulele. And I wanted a Martin.

So I bought a Martin. It is loud and very woody sounding, much more of what I like than the Teton. The intonation however, is not as good as the Teton was. The action is a bit high but I play pretty hard so I'm ok with that. And it's a Martin, what else can I say?

In some ways the Teton is the better ukulele. In other ways the Martin is a better ukulele. But the Teton could never be a Martin. The maker does matter to me.

jer said:

Here's another example, that is a personal one:
I've e-mailed a certain ukulele manufacturer (not one of the largest ones, but not one of the custom builders either) and never even got a simple reply back. For me, if a company can't at least acknowledge and answer some simple questions with the e-mail address they've provided it's a no-go.

What if the company has religious affiliations that you strongly agree or disagree with? Does that sway you one way or the other?

These are just some examples.

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Great question!

I've encountered both of those issues. The first one did NOT affect my support for the brand - full disclosure, Kamaka's email customer service has been pretty sub-par (although it's been a few years since I've emailed them and I certainly hope things have improved) and while it did put me off a bit, the customer service I got a bit later via a phone call was enough to set things right. I'm still a loyal fan.

As for the latter issue - there's a very good, very popular ukulele manufacturer that incorporates elements of a religion into their design. While it's not overt - I certainly was not aware of it when I bought one of their ukes - once I heard an explanation of it in a documentary about the maker, I couldn't un-hear it, and every time I picked up that uke I was a bit uncomfortable. So, in the end I opted to re-home it, and would probably not buy from them again.

As for politics - if I found out that one of my preferred uke brands supported something or someone I was opposed to, I'd hesitate to buy from them again but would probably still keep any uke I already owned that they made. I'm dealing with this exact thing with my preferred brand of running shoes right now - the company's founder donated an enormous amount of money to a candidate I vehemently opposed. When the time comes to replace those shoes, I'll try to find another option.

bikemech,
I think that fits in just fine with this discussion actually.

But janeray, their headstock design looks cool doesn't it ? Not something that bothers me, the sound and playability are great.

I don't give a crap about their politics or religion, but if they're jerks, ain't going to happen.

There's a company (un-uke-related) that I've spend hundreds, maybe even thousands with, but they decided that if you didn't agree with them in this last election, you HAVE to apologize to everybody (in the middle of Thanksgiving dinner, no less), or you're a crappy excuse for a human being.

Y'know, even if I agreed with their politics, that's got nothing to do with what I buy from them, and if they think anybody who doesn't agree is a ____ and feel the need to send that to their customers, I'm done with them.

cml said:

But janeray, their headstock design looks cool doesn't it ? Not something that bothers me, the sound and playability are great.

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You know, honestly - call me boring, but I prefer a more traditional headstock design It did look kinda cool on my longneck pineapple though, and yeah - the sound was what won me over.

ubulele said:

There are enough choices that I don't have to give my business to jerks, and there are several makers and vendors who have worked their way onto my offal-list.

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I agree with that. Every once in a while I'll run into someone who acts like they are doing me a favor by selling me something. I just move on down the road to someone who appreciates my business.

janeray1940 said:

There's a very good, very popular ukulele manufacturer that incorporates elements of a religion into their design. While it's not overt - I certainly was not aware of it when I bought one of their ukes - once I heard an explanation of it in a documentary about the maker, I couldn't un-hear it, and every time I picked up that uke I was a bit uncomfortable. So, in the end I opted to re-home it, and would probably not buy from them again.

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On the other side, if this is the manufacturer that I think you are talking about, that information deepened my appreciation for the brand, which I already liked. Another major manufacturer talked about their personal background in an interview, and that also deepened my appreciation for that brand, too.

That said, most of these ukuleles are made in China, whose companies (not the actual brand) should have no religious affiliation.

On another note, I plan to buy a Mainland just because of a long conversation with Mike at the Milwaukee Ukulele Festival...great guy, great supporter of the ukulele community, and he's getting my business, too.

As a music educator, however, I have never considered religion or politics with any instrument before these situations...it has been price and quality, which are not always related to each other.

There is only one manufacturer whose uke I wouldn't own. I love its sound, but no thank you. It's because of their religion. There is only one builder I wouldn't buy from, he made a complete ass of himself here on UU a while back. I wouldn't buy a uke off Amazon, it has nothing to do with politics or religion, it's just not a good idea.
I have had nothing but a joyous experience buying from Mim, and from Cocobolo Ukuleles. Cocobolo is concerned about the environment, and the plant and care for a new tree for every one that is used in the construction of their ukes.
I don't know the politics or religion of either Mim or Kevin (Cocobolo Ukuleles), and it probably isn't any of my business. But I bet I can guess.
We all like to be treated well, and affiliate ourselves with people who are like us. It's only natural.
There are some very interesting and intelligent, well thought out replies here, folks. Congrats for keeping it real.

Choirguy said:

On the other side, if this is the manufacturer that I think you are talking about, that information deepened my appreciation for the brand, which I already liked. Another major manufacturer talked about their personal background in an interview, and that also deepened my appreciation for that brand, too.

That said, most of these ukuleles are made in China, whose companies (not the actual brand) should have no religious affiliation.

On another note, I plan to buy a Mainland just because of a long conversation with Mike at the Milwaukee Ukulele Festival...great guy, great supporter of the ukulele community, and he's getting my business, too.

As a music educator, however, I have never considered religion or politics with any instrument before these situations...it has been price and quality, which are not always related to each other.

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Tbh, ay first I was a little annoyed. Incorporating religious design without telling consumers? Bad mojo in my book. But, the sound and playability are great and the headstock looks like a pineapple. That's a neat design. I could do without the king of kings reference though.

All in all, I love it, religious design or not.

Choirguy said:

On the other side, if this is the manufacturer that I think you are talking about, that information deepened my appreciation for the brand, which I already liked.

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cml said:

Tbh, at first I was a little annoyed. Incorporating religious design without telling consumers? Bad mojo in my book.

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Agree about the disclosure from the start - I was more put off by the lack of disclosure than the actual reference. The fact that it may put one consumer off (me) but may encourage interest from another consumer (Choirguy) makes me think the market is large enough to be open about that sort of thing. I'd prefer to make an informed decision rather than learn of it after the fact.

I own two luthier built ukuleles and a batch of cheap/middle range,and
I use each one to suit a particular song or style, which suits the uke
to what I am playing, to my ears.Whether anyone would agree is a
different matter! It works for me, and that's good enough!

Nope. Quality is quality. If I find the instrument hard to set down after I've played it I'll be sorely tempted to buy it.

I buy the instrument, not the maker.

One of my most prized ukes is made by Lehua. It's a tenor that I bought 17 years ago from Grypon strings in Palo Alto, CA. It is one that was made in Mexico (before they moved production to somewhere else) and it outshines any Martin or 'K' uke I've ever played. The intonation is spot-on, the sustain is amazing, and the depth, punch and clarity of tone will make you think it cost thousands of dollars.

I paid $169 +tax for it.

" I know of a uke company who had a politician from a certain party at their offices for an event. If you were solidly involved in the other party, would you avoid buying from this maker"

Depends on a lot of things. Was the uke company - as a company - making a political statement? That might make me see what my other options are. It might also depend on who the politician was. Just political party alone doesn't mean I'd be for or against someone.

"I've e-mailed a certain ukulele manufacturer (not one of the largest ones, but not one of the custom builders either) and never even got a simple reply back. For me, if a company can't at least acknowledge and answer some simple questions with the e-mail address they've provided it's a no-go."

One of the most popular places for UU people to buy ukes didn't respond to email, their customer contact form, or a phone message. I tried all the options, and then moved on. I'm not saying I'd never buy from them, but I'd look elsewhere first in the future. It appears to me, from threads on the forum, that this place is trying to correct this customer service problem, (someone else noted it, and the owner responded here), so I give them credit for acknowledging a problem and trying to correct it. That deserves another chance, if they should have something I'd like to purchase. But if it's between them and some place that has provided good customer service for me in the past, I'd go with the previous positive experience.

Another place didn't respond for a month. I tried again, and got a response, with an explanation of what happened, and an offer of a great deal on the ukulele I wanted. Purchase was made.

"What if the company has religious affiliations that you strongly agree or disagree with? Does that sway you one way or the other?"

Yes. I shouldn't even know anything about religious affiliations for a ukulele related company, so if they're so loud about it that I become aware of it, it would make me uncomfortable, whether I agree with their affiliation or not. We're all welcome to our religious affiliations, but for a non-religious product, it shouldn't be part of the package.

I recall someone here saying that they sold a custom ukulele because they had a less-than-positive interaction with the builder about some issues with the ukulele. IIRC, they liked the ukulele, but it also reminded them of the negative experience, so they moved on from it. That makes sense to me.

Since this is just a hobby for me, it should be fun and about music, and not tied in to politics or religion. Bad customer service takes away the fun, too.

This question can be applied to any decision to part with hard earned (or otherwise obtained) money in exchange for goods or services.

It's not a simple proposition. On one hand, many of us don't have an opportunity to effect change other than voting or speaking out and both of those options are only effective if you are lucky enough to jump aboard a movement at the right time.

Voting with one's pocketbook by boycotting a vendor who displays attitudes or positions that offend me as a buyer will not typically lead to an outcome of change on the vendor's part, but it will underscore my view that I refuse to contribute to the financial well being of someone who harbors views or behaves in a manner that I find objectionable.

While I can appreciate the view that a fine instrument is a fine instrument whether it was built by great humanitarian or a soulless predator, the reality is that we are rarely limited to such extreme choices. For every person who wraps their products with a veil of religion or politics, there are scores more who don't add that kind of baggage to their wares.

The bottom line for me is whether the builder/vendor is simply selling a product or are they using the product to promote a view of the world and how they believe others should behave relative to their viewpoint. If it's clear that the latter is what is going on, I simply move on to other options.

Joyful Uke said:

I recall someone here saying that they sold a custom ukulele because they had a less-than-positive interaction with the builder about some issues with the ukulele. IIRC, they liked the ukulele, but it also reminded them of the negative experience, so they moved on from it. That makes sense to me.

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*raises hand* I believe that may have been me! And I considered bringing that up when I first responded to this thread, but I wasn't quite sure it was relevant. On second thought, perhaps it is.

I don't have a lot of money to begin with, so I consider purchases really carefully before committing. Once I have committed, I tend to take into account the whole experience: do I like the product, do I like the service, does owning or using it make me feel like it was money well spent? Once I find something unsettling about the experience, whether it's a quality control issue, a customer service issue, or the knowledge that the profits from my hard-earned money might be something I really disagree with (be it politics, religion, or general attitude issues, as in the case of that custom uke) I will absolutely avoid spending money with that person or company again. Moreover, I will be pretty open about my experiences, whether positive and negative, online and in person.

There are *so many* options out there for just about everything, including ukes. When I can opt for the one that excels all around - quality of product, quality of service, and, ideally, a politically and religiously neutral stance - I will always choose that one over any other.

bborzell said:

Voting with one's pocketbook by boycotting a vendor who displays attitudes or positions that offend me as a buyer will not typically lead to an outcome of change on the vendor's part, but it will underscore my view that I refuse to contribute to the financial well being of someone who harbors views or behaves in a manner that I find objectionable.

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That was really well stated. I've been a vote-with-my-wallet person for a very long time - as I have very little time and even less money, I think of it as a way of making the best choices I can. No, I don't expect that the company I am avoiding will change their ways, but at least I can have a clear conscience that I made a decision that doesn't leave me feeling like I'm part of the problem.

Nickie said:

There is only one builder I wouldn't buy from, he made a complete ass of himself here on UU a while back.

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Its funny you should post that. I nearly posted a similar feeling about a builder who participates here on UU. I had an interaction with him that really rubbed me the wrong way (he responded to one of my posts in a snide and condescending manner - and my post had nothing to do with him! When I tried to be conciliatory in my follow-up, he doubled down on his criticism) and it has colored my view of him ever since. Supposedly he is a great guy and a great builder, but I struggle with the notion of buying one of his ukes.