Amateur Musicians are an Underserved, Untapped Market
Based on some rough research, there are 61 million amateur musicians in the United States. That's one in every five people, or 1.5x the population of California.
Opportunity:
The casual musicians I know love to jam and hang with friends, but it’s a big investment of space and money to create the ideal setup. If you are not an aspiring professional, and just do it for kicks and social interaction, you don’t want to dedicate a space, lug gear around, or clean up after.
I think there should be a WeWork type establishment for amateur musicians, call it Jam Space as a Service.
What This Is:
- A monthly membership for a place to jam
- A playground for adults with TVs, loud speakers, beers on tap
- Fully equipped with mid-tier quality instruments (or bring your own)
- A community atmosphere with common lounge areas to meet new jam partners
- Accessible through mobile booking
- Cleaning included
What This Isn’t:
- A recording studio
- Rentable by the hour
- Meant for professionals
Here are some trends that make me think this could work:
Subscription Memberships for Group Experiences: People pay to join dart clubs, bowling leagues, professional networking groups, and online video game communities; this is no different
Excess Supply of Retail Space and Commercial Space: The confluence of online shopping and work from home are making industrial spaces cheaper to rent
Specialized Space as a Service: Examples include: Alma, which offers shared space for therapists; Spacious, which offers shared spaces for restauranteurs; and Glitch City, which offers shared space for Game Developers
I broke this down (https://www.stealmyidea.io/) and would be curious if others think it's something people would join. I believe that after COVID passes, the concept of a third place between home and work will become even more meaningful, especially as people look to engage with old friends and new communities.
I don't mean to rain on your parade, but as someone who has built apps in the past for professional and amateur musicians - that is a market that hates to spend money on anything at all. Even a $2 app was a hard sell for that market, and that was a few years ago when the economy was good.
This could work.
I been to rehearsal spaces that have a shared space for events like this. I love being able to try out high end amps for cheap! I think others would love that opportunity as well.
There are also paid drum circles that are essentially this idea. Not a business, but a great music community.
I'm an amateur musician and I find it very hard to find people to play with.
Before you start with a space, maybe an online community or Facebook group might be a better place to start? It's hard to find musicians. Many post ads in music stores or in online classifieds, but something more comprehensive and focused would likely do bettter.
There are physical maker spaces that charge a monthly subscription for access to a space and equipment. The real value is the community you build around these spaces. It could definitely be done for music. Although, these projects are not very lucrative businesses.
Another thing to consider is your target audience. Twenty somethings might not have the money or interest in a shared music space, but older musicians would. Amateurs pay a lot of money to perform on stage in choirs, ballet, etc. Giving people an opportunity to feel like a rock star is definitely something you could charge for.
I hope that helps.
John
My gut is that this won't work. I don't think all amateur musicians like to jam, and those that do are picky about who they'll jam with.
Musicians do pay for some things. How much is spent on instruments, lessons, and coached performance experiences like School of Rock? But they have to see the value. If they show up a few times and don't like who they get stuck playing with, they'll bounce and cancel their memberships.
In pre-COVID times, if someone wanted to try this, a cheap way to experiment would be to:
For someone who already had the instruments, this could be profitable from Day 1 if it worked. Might be worth trying.
But COVID changes everything. It's harder now for people to jam with anyone from outside their household, regardless of whether they already know each other, etc. I think if you wanted to solve the "musicians need a place to jam" problem in 2021, the solution is not to get more people in the same room with strangers.
One part of this pitch that I do like is that retail real estate is so available right now. Is there a way to build out a cheaply-available space where each musician is totally isolated, with plexiglass or something? Some way where they could all hear and see each other, but never breath the same air? How many existing bands out there would jump at the chance to safely play music in the same room for the first time in nearly 12 months?
If you can solve that, you don't need to reinvent the payment model or put strangers into potentially socially uncomfortable situations. You can just be the only player in town who can execute on the battle-tested room-by-the-hour model.
I like your consistency in working on your newsletter. Keep it up!