Lowden Guitars has turned out its 20,000th guitar – thought to be the most expensive ever produced in the UK – and is continuing to expand thanks in the main to its knack of securing local government investment.
In three years since receiving a significant loan from the Growth Loan Fund, which provides loans to established Northern Ireland SMEs seeking to access additional business finance, the company has created 13 jobs and expanded its workshop from two to nine units.
Founded by George Lowden in 1974, the firm now employs 29 workers producing handcrafted instruments that are sold throughout Europe, North America, Canada, Australia and the Far East. Lowden players include Snow Patrol’s Gary Lightbody, Ed Sheeran, Eric Clapton and Foy Vance.
Speaking about his 20,000th guitar, its new Genesis model, George Lowden commented: “The Genesis guitar is the most unique piece we have ever created. We have been working on this project for over a year now and not only is it stunning to look at, but the sound it produces is also incredible. A piece of the guitar was sent to an artist in America and he has created a phenomenal piece of artwork, inlayed in to the wood itself. We’ve taken our time on this project because I wanted to create a truly spectacular piece to mark such a significant milestone for us. We’ve already sold the guitar to a local buyer and, while I can’t tell you how much it went for, we believe it is the most expensive guitar ever made in Ireland and possibly Great Britain.”
The company has come a long way since it received funding from the Growth Loan Fund, which enabled the company to begin a five year plan in response to a huge backlog of orders. The firm still has a year’s worth of orders, says Lowden.
“We’ve expanded our premises in Downpatrick, created further employment in the local area and developed our production with new jigs and equipment. Business is about relationships and our partnership with WhiteRock and the Growth Loan Fund has been nothing but positive and an important part of the success over these last few years. We have a good reputation for building high quality guitars and that is something we would never want to compromise by growing too fast. Our goal is to continually improve our production methods through fine tuning and innovation to ultimately increase output.
“Next month we will showcase The Genesis guitar and present our new range and designs at the 2017 NAMM show in Anaheim, California which has over 100,000 attendees. Throughout 2017 we will also continue to visit new markets.”
