At 40 Years, Shubb Capos Keeps Firm Grip on the Market
Back in 1974, banjo player Rick Shubb and Dave Coontz, a student of Rick’s and an auto mechanic comfortable with metalworking and design, decided to make Shubb’s unique concept for…
Brian Ball
Approaching another big Summer NAMM Show this month in Nashville, this spring seemed like the perfect opportunity to check in with one of the industry’s most recognizable companies – Ernie…
Fender Does Away with MSRP
As of July 7, FMIC will cease the use of “Manufacturer Suggested Retail Prices” (MSRP) on any Fender-branded products in North America. A representative for the company stated, “In an…
Sweetwater’s GearFest 2014 Draws Record Crowds and Sales
GearFest visitors crowd around the “DealZone.”Sweetwater Sound says that GearFest 2014 was a bigger success than ever, breaking every record established by previous GearFest events. Launched in 2002, Sweetwater’s annual GearFest…
Craft
Draft beer. Handmade coffee. Artisanal chocolate. Heritage jeans. Hand-carved wooden iPad cases. It’s hard to avoid the retail collateral of the current hipster era, with its emphasis on the bespoke.…
Store-Branded Instruments Represent More than a ‘Vanity’ Label for Some
In the course of compiling our annual ’50 Dealer 50 State’ review and forecast each November, we’ve noticed that a fair number of dealers cite their own store’s brand –…
Fender Adds U2’s Bono, The Edge to Board of Directors
U2 duo Bono and The Edge have joined the Fender board of directors. The singer and guitarist, both recruited by Fender majority owner TPG Growth, will work with the company…
Trade Regrets: Bob Tudor
On May 23, PreSonus announced today the passing of Bob Tudor, the company's chief technology officer. Widely respected in the pro audio/MI industry, Tudor followed a long and winding road…
NAMM D.C. Fly-In 2014
NAMM’s D.C. Fly-In allows members to perpetuate NAMM’s vision of a world in which every child has a deep desire to learn music and a recognized right to be taught;…
Fender Promotes McDonald to Executive VP
Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (FMIC) has promoted industry veteran Richard McDonald to executive vice president, Fender Brand. The move represents a larger strategic shift that aims to improve alignment and better…
Cordoba Names Ren Ferguson VP of Manufacturing/R&D for Guild Brand
On the heels of Cordoba Music Group’s announcement of their intent to acquire Guild from Fender Musical Instrument Company (FMIC), CMG has now announced that Ren Ferguson will join the…
Trade Regrets: Kay Koster
Kay Koster was a pioneering women retail owner, who not only successfully ran a business on her own beginning in 1940, but also personally repaired guitars and amps of all…