Music Education in Sparks LLC
Sparks
Mike Manning, President
Business this year: Just reopened in June after closing in 2011. Formerly Sparks Music.
Evolution in the industry you’re excited about? Just getting started again, I am hyper-focused on the basics of my business plan. I didn’t pay attention to the economy in 2008, expanding to five locations during the great recession. I thought that our 500-student base insulated me from reality, didn’t play defensively, overpaid my teachers, gave them enough students that they started their own businesses, and generally got sloppy with my bottom line. All it took to bring down the house was a poor economy, a cocky attitude, and a family health crisis.
Keeping our original domain name SparksMusicCenter.com helped in the smooth transition to the new operation. It has everything from a lesson management and payment system to rotating banners and fantastic newsletter templates. It organizes my marketing, customer contacts, branding, social media, online sales and more in a truly user-friendly environment. Because we maintained good relations with our major vendors Devitt & Hanser and Chesbro, we were able to restart with a phone call. Both vendors drop ship for us for five dollars. We absorb the fee and still keep our GPM at around 40 percent.
We affiliated with RentMyInstrument.com and are sold on the idea of automated instrument rentals. Using our kiosk, customers sign up online for their complete rental package delivered by UPS free!
Product of the Year? Doing very well with Michael Kelly and BC Rich guitars. They are quality instruments for our student base and at a perfect price point for value shoppers.
Looking Back on 2025: A Year of Controlled Chaos (Emphasis on “Controlled”)