Hamilton Stands Expands, Takes Over Own Distribution

Hamilton Stands entered its 131st year in business this year with an eye towards the future and a blueprint for big changes. President Bill Carpenter brought their distribution in-house, brought in KMC/Fender veteran Bob Jespersen as director of sales and marketing, and appointed NAMM veteran Judy Dodds as manager of inside sales and customer service. Debuting at the NAMM Show in January were a dozen new products that include further expansion in the MI combo segment.

It all adds up to one of the most interesting years for the stand maker since Carpenter acquired the iconic company in 2006.

A Historic Departure

“Throughout its 131 years, Hamilton has relied mostly on wholesale distributors to deliver its products to market,” Carpenter says. Then in 2009, they partnered with DANSR as their master distributor. In 2012, they expanded the master distribution model to include St. Louis Music. “Acknowledging changes in the distribution of stands and accessories in our industry, we decided in 2014 to move away from the master distribution model and once again sell our products directly to the wholesalers who have supported Hamilton over many years.”

With the ever-changing marketplace, Carpenter decided that with their emphasis on building a viable “asked for” brand, Hamilton would do best to partner with some retailers directly. “These will be a group of dealers who are uniquely positioned to promote the Hamilton brand.”

The advantages of these changes include being closer to their distributors and retailers, and keeping up with the ever-changing times. “The move to a master distributor in 2009 was done for good business reasons. But since then the market has changed and the time is right for a more direct method to market. Additionally, the flattening of our distribution channel provides us the opportunity to add value by reducing prices on certain key products while increasing some MSRP levels closer to the market.”

And since all those stands and accessories need to be kept somewhere, Hamilton now has a fulfillment center in Indianapolis. “It is a modern facility with state-of-the-art order processing technology. The center also includes a national freight company, which can provide cost benefits to our dealers as well as efficient movement of some orders. We will, of course, use customer-specified carriers when asked, but the Less Than Truckload rates we are able to negotiate are often lower.”

Also, plans for another warehouse in the West are on the drawing boards.

Jespersen, Dodds Join

Carpenter says that as he was planning to change their method to market, he knew he had to bring in someone of stature and experience to be responsible for the day-to-day marketing and sales. Jespersen is now responsible for setting sales prices and policies and is the “daily face of Hamilton.” He’s also managing the traditional and digital components of their marketing.

“Bob has great industry experience in both retail and wholesale,” Carpenter says. “In his 30-plus years at KMC, he’s earned great skills in marketing and sales. Also during that time, he’s built lasting relationships.”

“I’m thrilled to be working for Bill and the entire Hamilton Stands family,” says Jespersen. “Hamilton has played a supportive role in my entire music performance and sales careers – my first music, guitar, and trumpet stands were Hamiltons! Now after getting reacquainted with the portfolio of useful support solutions, previewing new products, meeting principal business partners, and adopting our vision for the future, I feel truly honored to be a part of the next 131 years of Hamilton history.”

Dodds also joins Hamilton as manager of customer service and sales.

“Judy is an industry professional and probably knows more dealers than anyone,” Carpenter says, noting that she spent more than 20 years working for NAMM. Dodds will be responsible for inside sales and customer service tasks. “She will be the voice of Hamilton and assure timely processing of customer orders and questions.”

Carpenter pledges to continue to offer a broad portfolio of products, including more than just music stands. “Many of our products are unique to us so they are less likely to be shopped against a competitor. Additionally, many of our products were specifically designed to address musicians’ needs or the shortcomings they experience using other products.”  

Otherwise he plans to continue putting his experience in product design to good use. “Since acquiring Hamilton, I’ve put an increasing emphasis on my role in design, and am pleased with recent additions to our line,” he says. At NAMM, they introduced 12 new products. Of note was the first auto-lock guitar stand with width-adjustable arms, the KB3800G Ultra-Lock.

“We also introduced a new small platform guitar stand, the KB3500G. Based on a modified A-frame, the stand will fold to easily fit into a gig bag. Borrowing a page from our history, we are calling this the ‘Super Guitar Stand,’ which was used 40 years ago for our KB37, a predecessor to today’s cradle guitar stand.” Other NAMM introductions included the E-Trigger mic stand; a lightweight professional DJ laptop stand; and a phone holder that attaches to most any stand.

Since 2006, Carpenter has moved Hamilton increasingly into the combo segment. “We’ve not been a stranger to the category, of course, as we’ve been selling capos since the early 1900s, guitar stands since the 1920s, and speaker and mic stands since the 1960s,” he notes. “But we see ourselves growing our presence in this segment.”

In 2012, they introduced the StagePRO series. “In time, the line will be developed to include a broader range of in-house designed and outside purchased products. It is my intent to keep the StagePRO brand focused on the value proposition of quality products, intended for durable service, and priced competitively to the market.”