We Imagined Something Like This for Australia – WATCH THE SHORT VIDEO!

We did this last year CLICK HERE for the 2019 program CLICK HERE for a highlights video and lots of other info. And in 2020 we were getting closer to our objective and along comes COVID19. So,

In 2020 by necessity Make Music Day 2020 is Going Virtual

Make Music Day is a global celebration of music making that takes place on June 21 every year in over 1000 places in 120 countries. Unlike traditional music festivals Make Music Day is an open invitation for everyone to make music anywhere and anywhere and register their events, so that they are part of a giant global program. In this COVID19 Year we go online.

It is a DIY music festival. And Australia because of time zones can lead the world on June 21.
We’re encouraging any one and all to come up with innovative ways to make music online and share it from home or any place they can film themselves doing it. Register their performance on the website and add the Tags #makemusicdayoz and #makemusicday and we start the build of a giant database of music from around the world.

We had spent a year organising 2020 Make Music Day only to be stopped in our tracks like the rest of the music industry – but we can go online and that’s what our brothers (including the US, UK, Germany, China, Brazil, Italy, and others, ) in the global Make Music Alliance agreed. Let’s do it together.

We have CreateNSW right behind us to lead NSW in this endeavour, and many other councils and organisations all over Australia and we are calling on our Music Stores to get involved too. It’s been quiet in stores, use the isolation to create a music performance by you and/or your staff – filming themselves and posting – there’d be Australian Musicians all over the world, promoted and exposed. Australia can lead the global event.

In a 24-hour Make Music Day across the world, Australia is first in the program. We are reaching out to present a virtual Melbourne Guitar Show too on Make Music Day and promote Support Act.

And our overall activities are targeted at raising Support Act awareness.
With the NAMM Foundation’s support we have partnered with the Live Music Office and APRA/AMCOS to deliver the event nationally and partner in developing the event globally.

This is an event initiated by our music products industry – it is about anyone making music and being part of a huge global event.

Recent data released by illion would suggest that discretionary spending has trended upward alongside the announcement of the government stimulus packages and continued on a steeper curve than essentials, through March but has eased back during April, with spending on essentials being mostly driving retail figures.
Sales of musical instruments have carried on strongly for some through April following a huge March.
For music products retail it’s been business ‘unusual’ but brisk all the same for many retailers, depending on the category. Some categories faring better than others in the circumstances.
Preliminary figures from the Bureau of Statistics show retail turnover had its biggest monthly rise on record in March. Supermarket and grocery store sales rose 22.4 per cent, while sales of alcohol and home office supplies were also strong. This continued in April, but discretionary spending pulled back.
Economists expect a pullback in retail sales as stockpiling subsides and major retailers including Myer extend shutdowns.
Those who were set up well for e-commerce pre-Covid-19 are flourishing, those who lagged behind are learning quickly to get their online services up to scratch to deal with demand and the new trading conditions.
Australian Musician online has reported about music retail being open and doing business, and letting the consumer know. There’s plenty of positive messages coming out of the article from our member retailers. March was akin to Christmas for many retailers we have spoken to and April has continued on that way. Many dealers are naturally giving their focus to their online channels.
When posing the question of “what impacts do you think Self-isolation and social distancing will have on you?” Some interesting responses, were reported by illion too.
More time to do what I enjoy – 36% |Beneficial impacts from reading, creative pursuits, etc – 32% |
Increased opportunity to learn – 26% | all into these music making sits pretty well.
Acoustic piano specialist stores, while seeing more than double their usual digital piano sales, have seen un unprecedented drop-off in floor traffic. On her ABC interview Jenny Ko of Gospel Pianos said she was seeing only a couple of customers during the week at the moment. Online business in digitals had more than doubled, but not close to making up for lost acoustic sales.
Michael Cleves told us that his group of stores, which includes the Australian Piano Warehouses has seen a similar rush for home, with loads of digital pianos selling to go with some softness in the mid range upright acoustic piano market with Grand pianos holding up. “As always with acoustic pianos, you’ve got to do the extra.” “In general MI, entry level gear has been huge in March, we’ve been very busy at Billy Hydes (Vic) and Winston Music (SA) as well as in the Dale Cleves stores. “we are seeing a lot of product sold to new customers during this period, and that’s a positive”
It’s a similar story with Bernies Musicland in Ringwood, Victoria. “Acoustics are quieter but digital pianos are quite busy and portable organs too, the little Hammonds, we’ve been busy with those,” says store owner Bernie Capicchiano. “Most are looking for home entertainment, so we are getting comments like … we always wanted to have the time to play, now we do or we are locked up and need our music.”
Acoustics have seen significant disruption, which is traditional during times of uncertainty. Brass and woodwind sales have also hit the wall, with schools disrupted and complicated by the fact that these instruments cannot be tried out instore by those wanting to trade up or get themselves a better instrument. Fine Music’s Michael Jongebloed saying there was not much selling in his world, besides accessories and print. Michael was enthused however by the online Bands Festival he was doing online as reported last week.
Fears that people are bringing forward purchases they were planning to make down the track were countered with the numbers of new customers taking up music. One supplier saying “we up 300% on entry level guitars, drum kits are up too”. Entry level guitar and amp packs are also struggling to keep up with demand.
Some suppliers and retailers have seen drops in business levels sufficient to apply for JobKeeper wage subsidies despite all the talk of boom times. Although welcome, businesses have been burdened with a cash flow crisis as the lag time between receiving the credits and paying staff salaries widens.
Those dealers that have been working in the online space for while have been able to capitalise.
Macron Music invested its time wisely by improving its online service, not just for the current conditions for into the future. Anthony Ursino said. “Because it has been less busy instore, we have been able to catch up on things that we were putting in place anyway with our online service.”
So, with restrictions at Stage 3, retail has been able to operate. As have logistics. Supplying musical instruments has been somewhat of an essential service during a ‘lock down period’ judging by the level of business. We appear to be in a similar situation with the emergency as New Zealand with its businesses only opening again this week. It has been in complete shut down, but fortunately for our industry, we have been able to continue to trade.
Retailers report that the people issues are a big challenge, the safety of customers and staff. But those with well-developed online infrastructure prospered and so did stores with not such a good online infrastructure! They found ways. Home deliveries, kerb side click and collect, uber, etc!
Marcello Grassi, co-owner at Eastgate Music in Kew is taking the health advice very seriously.
Despite the increased measures to produce a safe environment for customers to shop in, almost universally people are shopping via phone or online and stores are doing whatever it takes to deliver the goods and keep their loyal lientele satisfied. “We do encourage online sales,” says Eastgate’s Marcello. “You are very welcome to call us and we can greet you outside, we can load your car. We can do whatever you want that is required. If you want us to wear mask and gloves, not a problem.”
Suppliers are now experiencing stock shortages, and retailers may be wondering where their sales may come from in the months to come, while supply gets back to normal. But to the end of April suppliers were reporting a big couple of months as people got their music needs stocked up.
“It wasn’t exactly panic buying” said Concept Music’s Graham Hoskins, but [there has been] a huge increase in demand for instruments like keyboards and guitars, even drums, where people are looking for something that’s going to help them get through the situation,” he said.
Craig Johnston too (Keyboard Corner/KC’s Rock Shop) has been one of those to be surprisingly busy and profitable over the March – April months. “Business in acoustic pianos was almost nothing for March but the last 3 weeks we have seen a return to normal sales levels, everywhere else has been way up” Craig said. “What I anticipated could have been the end of many businesses in the industry, mine included, has turned out to be a once in a lifetime opportunity”.
We can only trust that as schools return to some normal and protocols for contact and use of instruments that pent up demand returns in categories like band and orchestral.
The AMA is conducting industry surveys to establish a benchmark for the industry as of now and another in the coming months. Rob Walker said “without a lot of foresight in the current situation, if we take out temperature at the end of April and do it again in three months, we can get a perspective of what the impact has been and is likely to be in the future”.

The ATO has now released the requirements in respect of registration, reporting and payment obligations under the JobKeeper Scheme. There are many variables to accommodate specific employee and employer circumstances, but the information pack explains how it will work for most.

The association’s Auditor, Page Harrison & Co has made available the a compehensive COVID 19 Stimulus and Support Measures  information package.

The online application process will be available from Monday 20 April 2020 via the Tax Agent and Business Portals. https://www.ato.gov.au/general/jobkeeper-payment/employers/enrol-and-apply-for-the-jobkeeper-payment/#ApplyfortheJobKeeperpaymentearlyMay2020

If you’re not already using the Business Portal the following link provides instructions on how to create your myGovID and attach it to the Business ABN. Please note that a myGovID is different to a myGov account.

https://www.ato.gov.au/General/Online-services/Accessing-online-services-with-myGovID-and-RAM/

Prior to registering for the Scheme the following steps should be undertaken:

1. Determine employer eligibility – the business needs to satisfy the decline in turnover test of at least 30% once to be eligible for the scheme however the ATO will require confirmation and details of eligible employees and turnover to be provided on a monthly declaration. Exact details required by the ATO have not yet been released but it would be prudent to maintain up to date accounting records. Please refer to the Employer Eligibility Checklists for qualification criteria.

Employer Eligibility Checklists can be downloaded here

1. Ensure you have met the wage condition for each eligible employee – the Government payment is a reimbursement and therefore the employer must have already paid these amounts to the employee to qualify. The ATO has made an allowance for the month of April only whereby the employer can make a top-up payment to eligible employees who have been paid less than the minimum of $1,500 less applicable tax per fortnight by the end of April.
2. Provide each employee with a JobKeeper Employee Nomination Notice to complete and return to the employer prior to 30 April 2020. A copy of this form is attached for your convenience. You must retain electronic or physical signed copies of these forms.  Prior to sending to staff please complete the Employer Section A of the form.

JobKeeper Employee Nomination Notice

After registration every employee must be notified that they have been nominated in writing within 7 days. See attachment titled “Confirmation of JobKeeper Nomination”.

The ATO has advised that the consequence of claiming Scheme benefits when the business was not eligible or improper use of the scheme may result in repayment of the amounts received plus interest and penalties

Monday 30^th March

The week that was….

The industry is in a form of lockdown with stores sparsely attended by sales staff, no browsing policies, and limits of those allowed to enter. April fools day came and went with not much to prank or much to laugh about.

On Monday, the federal cabinet banned gatherings of more than two people. According to the ABC News, shops and shopping centres are excluded from the two-person rule, excepting that one must not gather in the shop in groups of more than two.

Several key wholesalers we have spoken to are 100% operating from home, most staff are ‘still’ employed’. There were a few exceptions where wholesalers were forced to layoff some of their workforce.  Music schools largely employing casual teachers are not operating across the country, while others are developing online teaching resources to meet demand. We are still selling, picking, packing, dispatching to our dealers.

In MI, it’s clear that whilst retailers can still operate, with the support of logistics, online MI stores will flourish. We’ve had reports of good online business to March 31. And in fact good business levels all round, as people stock up.

Manufacturers like Cole Clark and Maton are pushing on through and shipping guitars and not yet affected by any halt on their activities and the same. Maton too, continue production.

Retailers were reporting strong ‘Christmas like’ sales levels right through the week on top of a pretty good month. Operations have adapted with daily developments.

Banks will allow commercial landlords with loans of up to $10 million to delay their loan repayments by up to six months, on the condition tenants are not evicted due to the coronavirus crisis was another key announcement of the week. Banks are working with customers to help navigate difficult financial waters. Who’d a thought?

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a $130 billion package to support the wages of up to 6 million Australians throughout the coronavirus crisis.

The “Jobkeeper” subsidy will be worth $1500 a fortnight. The government will pay employers to pay their employees,” he said.

“Our goal is to protect lives and livelihoods of Australians to protect and preserve the economy that we depend on and to get to the other side as well.” The PM said according to the media this afternoon.

This was great news for workers and allowed businesses to keep operating in a lot of cases.

Australia’s peak retail body will raise casuals’ eligibility for the new jobkeeper payment with the government after unions, Labor and the Greens raised concerns that those with less than 12 months of service are excluded from the $1,500 fortnightly payment.

The Australian Retail Association’s executive director, Russell Zimmerman, Tuesday told Guardian Australia (Tuesday) that casuals’ eligibility was an “area of concern” and the government should consider exceptions for people with less than 12 months’ service but a likely “continuation of their role” after Covid-19 shutdowns.

Overall, businesses could continue to trade, observing strict rules and restructuring their focus. What the next week will be interesting as every day brings something new.

Provided expected ‘shut downs’ will allow online and deliveries music retail can continue to operate.