Upfront Q&A: Souldier – Good for Your Soul

Since 2004, music educator and gigging musician Jen Tabor began gifting hand-made guitar straps for her fellow bandmates. From those humble beginnings emerged Souldier, now a well-known and respected supplier of straps for guitars and other instruments, as well as dog-collars, belts, and other products. The straps, which often incorporate recycled materials, have since been embraced by the likes of Wilco, Aerosmith, The Lumineers, and The Black Keys amongst many others.

MMR recently spoke with company founder and leader Jen Tabor about her background in music, love of the Chicago scene, and both early and recent developments at Souldier.

Can you talk about the origins of Souldier? Who was involved in the earliest days of the company and what was the catalyst for launching the operation in the first place? Where was the original HQ and how large was it?

Souldier was founded in 2004 when I was playing in a rock band with friends from college.  We had two guitarists in the band with birthdays just days apart and I had to get them presents. I decided to make each of them a guitar strap that fit their unique personal style.  Neil, a fluent riff-writer, is a laid-back free spirit and Ben is amazing with interesting chord progressions and a polished southern gentleman. I picked out fabrics for each of them and used the small rolls of seatbelt from my dad’s auto business to build the first straps. I sold guitar straps at our merch table until I mustered up the courage to approach Rock N Roll Vintage [Chicago-based MI retailer Rock N Roll Vintage & Synth City – Ed.] and the rest is history. In the first year, I carried a bucket of straps into 200 music stores across the country with a story of an American handmade product and a focus on sustainability.

In the early years, I made product in evenings and weekends around my full-time orchestra teaching job in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. I devoted myself to Souldier as a side project until it became apparent that the business needed my full attention around 2008.   After our first NAMM tradeshow, I hired my first employee who came to my “studio,” which was the master bedroom in my tiny Chicago apartment. Lunch breaks were on my couch, and we shared the TV and the fridge during “working hours.’”Souldier started in my living room, then a master bedroom, before landing in a 1,500 sq. ft. shop in Ukrainian Village where we stayed for five years.  Souldier resided in Chicago and surrounding area from 2005-2016 before moving across the lake to Southwest Michigan. Since 2016, we have been manufacturing in Buchanan, MI in an 8,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility blocks away from the original Electro-Voice manufacuring plant.

Obviously your roots in the Chicago area have been a pivotal aspect that’s helped you evolve and improve your product offering. Can you talk about the Chicago music scene and its impact on the growth of Souldier?

Chicago has my heart and soul. I love the openness and grit of the people. They’re warm, straightforward, and tough with big hearts.  The scene in Chicago is all about live music with small venues everywhere, each having their own personality and congregations that represent the ethos of their neighborhood.  Touring bands are constantly present and up and coming acts are always making stops in Chicago.  Early on, we were able to connect with established musicians just by being part of the scene.  We attended all music events and Chicago’s weekly neighborhood festivals provided the perfect place to connect with our people.  I first met Jeff Tweedy at a street fair when Spencer’s band was opening the weekend.  Glen Kotche and John Stirratt used to stop in our tiny store front on their way home from taking kids to school.  Bands contacted us when they pass through town because we had it on our labels.  Chicago supports their music scene with amazing radio stations that are a huge resource to keeping the music community informed and unified. Shout out to XRT and Chirp!

Chicago was on the forefront of the indie craft movment in the early 2000s, and Souldier was there from the onset. The Renegade Craft Fair, the first large indie craft organization, started at the time Souldier was conceived and encouraged the development of the brand. The concepts were so new that Etsy was in its infancy manning a handmade booth and passing out stickers to vendors. Souldier was the first guitar strap, first camera strap on Etsy in 2007.

One of the most important and influential aspects of the Chicago music scene are the amazing guitar shops and their owners that first adopted Souldier.  Retailers like Rock N Roll Vintage, Old Town School of Folk Music, Chicago Music Exchange, Flatts & Sharpes, Cream City in Milwaukee, and tons of retailers across the country gave us a chance and purchased our product to resell in their store that laid the foundation for growth.  If they had said no, I might have quit, but they said yes, and I will be forever grateful they are part of my story. My retailers are everything and the relationship we’ve formed with them deserve recognition.

The expert design and build quality of Souldier products has led many high-profile artists to embrace the brand. How important are those artist endorsements in marketing and promoting the brand? Which artists do you feel have had the greatest impact in enhancing public awareness of Souldier?

First, thank you for the compliment!  We care about every product that leaves the building and have the standard that if it’s not good enough for you, it’s not good enough for the customer.  As for artists, the straps took on a life of their own.  Our straps have almost exclusively been sold in mom & pop shops across the country; that is where we’ve reached the artists. I also know of many high-profile musicians that share the brand with friends and the trickle down happens from there.  Now for the name drop: We’ve worked with Wilco, Johnny Marr, The Black Keys, Aerosmith, Taylor Swift, Jorma Kaukonen, Tom Petty, Bob Weir, The Black Pumas, Sheryl Crow, Band of Horses – everyone!  I appreciate our artists so much because they do amazing work and because they are some of the best people out there.  I also have ultimate appreciation for our customers who have collected Souldier straps and share our spirit. I once met a gentleman in his early 20s who asked me to identify all the famous artists straps.  Afterward, he dug the rack and found his favorite, a random in the back, and announced, “I don’t want any of the artist straps. One day you’re going to be telling the kids about my strap.”  I totally share his spirit.  We are all nothing until we’re something and I want to support our whole community.  Every famous artist was once aspiring to something, and I support them all the same.

Wilco is the band that made the largest impact on the Souldier brand.  Their performance on “SNL” in 2008 was a catalyst, pre-social media, that brought notable attention and awareness to the brand. As for proud moments, on a visit to the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame, there was/is a Souldier strap on Tom Petty’s guitar – inside the glass case! As a kid, I grew listening to “Refugee” on the turntable and it truly warms my heart. As important as artists wear your product is having them love it, and I strive to make product that people love.

Of most immediate interest to MMR readers is, of course, the straps you offer for musical instruments, but you also craft other types of straps and accessories (belts, collars, bags, et cetera). What’s the breakdown of total Souldier product sales between straps for instruments and all the other items Souldier offers? Is it pretty much 50/50, or is one category the clear “winner?”

I’d have to say that guitar straps are the clear winner of all the products we make because working with musicians is our niche. In music gear, I make things I feel passionate about and ideas that are missing in the market. Personal design instinct and listening to the customer is the main litmus test for brand launches.  Souldier continue to develop other product lines because I have always seen the lifestyle brand.  We will continue to expand our product line with a foundation in the music industry as we find new opportunities in products that align with our aesthetic.

Related to the above, what are currently the hottest sellers for Souldier?

The hottest sellers are our standard, recycled seatbelt guitar strap with vintage fabric.  People respond to having a unique strap that fits their guitar and style.  There’s nothing like having unique gear that is ethically made in the U.S. and is part of a great story. In 2022, we launched the full body leather Torpedo guitar strap (Damn, The Torpedoes!) that mixes our extensive fabric collection with a high-quality leather body, and we’ve had great response to the new collection.  Straps are like guitars in that they are collectable and highly personal to the user.  We provide a product like nothing else in the industry for durability, selection, and reputation.

Have you been negatively impacted by supply-chain or shipping challenges of late?

We have not been negatively impacted by supply-chain or shipping issues.  With most of our components sourced in the U.S., our manufacturing never hit a bump.  Being flexible and lean has been one of our greatest assets. Self-reliance has made the company strong through the crisis that caused difficulty to so many.

Let’s turn the very first question on its head: what is the present-day HQ (I’ve heard you purchased a former school building?), how large is it, and how many current employees are there?

I did purchase a school in the small town of Buchanan, MI!  Stark Elementary School had been closed for 11 years, adjacent to the original Electro-Voice manufacturing facility and I asked for a tour. At first sight, I saw an amazing space to bring people together and build a resource that doesn’t exist in the region. I’m using my background in education to activate the space into a community center, handing kids instruments, putting them in bands, and creating a space for future artists in the area.  In my early 20s, I ran a not-for-profit music school serving underprivileged youth in the Chicago housing projects.  Fast-forward to 2023 and I am using the same skills to open a school for arts and music education.  Stark School is now called the Stark Community Center and opened in May, 2023.  This is a passion project I am undertaking and we’re going to create big town opportunities in a small town.  After 18 years in the music business, I can use my resources and knowledge to create something for the community that inspires people and increases possibilities.  Last year, Souldier founded the Good For Your Soul Foundation, a 501C3 non-profit organization, to fund lessons and instruments for underprivileged youth in the community.

In 2022, I was able to acquire a 40K sq ft former newspaper building that is now the flagship location for Souldier with a retail store and food and drink establishment in Niles, MI.  We are located eight minutes from our Community Center, halfway between Chicago and Kalamazoo. In our new location, we are set up for long-term growth and are looking forward to bringing in local talent and building out the brand.  The staff in the shop is small but mighty, with an average of about six to 10 employees. Everyone is focused on making amazing product and it’s a complete team win when we see new artists using the straps we just made.

Any new or upcoming product releases you’d like to draw our readers’ attention to?

We are always launching new straps and products.  Our latest addition is the aforementioned Torpedo line, a full body leather line that is expanding in 2023 to include a wider variety of bass straps and specialty leathers.  We’re keeping our other 2023 releases close to the chest, but we hope readers will keep an eye on our progress.

On another note, Souldier took on a new adventure in April 2023 by opening their first lifestyle retail shop at the Salt Shed in Chicago.  The Salt Shed is the newest Chicago venue built in the former Morton Salt warehouse which is converted experiential music experience. The venue features both indoor and outdoor venues, a brewery, riverfront walk and now the Souldier flagship store.  We are excited to try new things and experiment with our customers and products in an intimate environment.

What is your current dealer network and how would interested MI retailers best go about partnering with Souldier?

To work with Souldier, send us an email through our website, contact us on Facebook, or Instagram. Any way you reach out, we will get your information back to the sales team and help you from there.  www.souldier.us  •  [email protected]

Expectations – both for Souldier and the MI industry, overall – for the coming months?

I see a lot of companies moving towards creating lifestyle brands and we’re seeing repetition in products and ideas.  The plan for Souldier in the coming months is to keep the customer at the center of what we do and design new product that we’re not seeing in the market.  I feel I’ve always been a black sheep in the music industry, a female manufacturer, designer, business owner who came to the industry with no previous ties.  I’m not sure where we fit, but we’re going to keep doing what we do, looking forward and helping make connections with those in our community.