I was in Northern Virginia yesterday to meet a guy and let him try out the Darling guitar. It was one of those things where each of us drove about half the distance and Winchester, Virginia was about it, about a 3-hour run from here. A quick look around Google spotted this little shop in a strip mall not far from the highway.
https://www.shenmusicstore.com/It was a very nice day for the trip; sunny and 70°, so I got there a few minutes early and scoped it out... nice bunch working there, about like the staff at Fret Mill Music here. I introduced myself to the manager and asked if I could audition a guitar for someone there, and he said sure, it'd be fine. He'd only seen one other Alembic recently. (I gathered from the description it was a Crest bass) Not wanting to freeload on them, I bought a couple sets of strings and waited on my guy. Talked to some of the sales staff and looked at guitars.
It was fun just hanging out in a different store from the one I'm usually in, like being in the other team's locker room at halftime. With the way you you can go online and buy practically anything now, it's tough running a retail store these days. That's the game though. This place, just like ours, you can walk in, plug in a guitar and play it though... give it a full run. The sales folks play, teach, and gig on guitars, basses, drums. (I had to ask...) They can advise, actually answer a question. It's just such a different experience. And I recognize not everyone wants that... would rather just click a few buttons and pay with a code... I get it, I've done it too. But it sure is nice to see these places are still around for those of us who still like a good old-fashioned guitar store.
Anyway, if you're ever up in Northern Virginia, check out Shenandoah Music. Tell Keith I sent you.
