Akala ko maaga ako!! I waited for the SM North Edsa Annex Skygarden entrance to open at 10am. Unfortunately, I think this was a mistake. I should've waited at the Savemore entrance, where the RJ store was nearest. Here's how 10am looked like at SM Annex:
The queue already extends in front of savemore..
And continues in front of the escalator..
The frenzy up front. People lining up to get into the store and another line for cashier... At least there seems to be a good system in place. People in line til 9:59 still get the 50% discount, and those that fell in line at 11 got the cutoff. So kahit nakapila ka til 11 or 12, you still get 50% as long as you're in the line before 11.
The catch is the people in line before you get the best picks. I was there exactly 10am, and yet when I went in, the wall for the acoustics was already 70% empty. Also, I didn't like the RJ les pauls left there, there's only one speed knob left when I needed 4, and the MXR effects I hoped to be there were apparently taken already. So like some of you guys, I left the store empty handed!
This lucky S.O.B. (left-most) came out with two(!!) ESP LTD EC-256. 15++k something indicated at the regular price tag, so for that price, he gets two of them. And he got the last stocks, imagine the evil feelings I have for the guy as he waited to pay for his guitars.
All in all, I'd say that this is a success for RJ and the people who got the 50% off deals. Imagine that only cash payments are accepted, so the RJ stores get to move old inventory out and have cash streaming into their books. Fantastic also for the really early birds, and I'd say the only losers here are those late in line, waited for 1-2 hours only to be disappointed with the stuff left for them... which is most of us unfortunately.
