How many guitars and sets of strings do you sell in a year?
Annual sales for guitar string sets are more than a million units. We ship in by airfreight over four tons of our most successful string brand [Ernie Ball] each month. With guitars, we sell the professional Musicman range which retails for between £2,000 and £5,000, and also intermediate and student guitars. We sell enough to keep two fully trained full-time technicians busy completing final quality inspections and setups – that's a lot of guitars!
Who uses your services?
As a wholesaler we do not retail direct to the public. Strings and Things is firmly committed to supporting the music retailer and we don't cross boundaries by opening retail stores. We're fortunate to have excellent working relationships with our customers, from the largest multi-branch outlets to the smaller independent shops. We also provide recognised, high-quality luthiers and repair shops with products. Our real desire is to support genuine retailers who are freely accessible to the public and help their businesses and ours grow. We pride ourselves in customer service and our loyalty to the retailer is rewarded back to us in turn by our customers.
What are your bestselling brands?
Leading names include Ernie Ball (guitar strings and accessories), Musicman (professional guitars and bass), Elixir (coated guitar strings), Hercules Stands (instrument and music stands), Dunlop (guitar strings and accessories) and Mooer Audio (pedals and effects) – they all leave the firm's warehouse every day. We also distribute specialist brands like LR Baggs pickups and Kyser capos. Our latest trade catalogue has 419 pages and you can see the full range at our website.
Have you noticed any changes within the music industry?
I know the pressures schools and teachers are under in today's statistics-driven education world. My former wife was an early years teacher. Music just isn't a priority for the average school. This leads to a shortage of adult musicians and forms String king: area sales manager Robin Crocker a vicious circle. The decline in music teaching has obviously had a negative effect on the industry but surely the real detriment must be towards the student in terms of character development, culture and choice.
What's your own background?
I was born into a very humble world in a remote part of Cornwall 60 years ago.
I joined the Army at 18 and stayed for six years. I gained a real understanding of the music business at Trevor James and Co. and, after 12 years, planned to move into the retail side of the industry. Instead, I joined Strings and Things and I've been here for 14 years.
I'm responsible for sales and customer service in the north of England, Scotland and Ireland and I'm also the Hercules Stands UK product manager, involving yearly visits to China and Taiwan to assist in the Hercules Stands development programme. I visit trade shows and work with leading brass bands, such as Cory, Foden's and Brighouse and Rastrick, who also help us develop Hercules products.
Why do you think Strings and Things has been so successful?
Customer service and value, not forgetting product knowledge, is everything – we genuinely try our best for the brands we represent. We have excellent experienced management and staff at all levels – and it's a good place to work! The sales office comprises five people with a combined service of about 130 years. We do what we say we are going to do and we never take customers or brands for granted. Oh, and a sense of humour helps.
What's your proudest moment with the company?
There have been so many! I was involved with Hercules Stands in designing a special bracket for a young trombonist who had the use of only one hand. He was then able to practise his trombone alone without his mum having to hold his instrument. When we gave him the finished item the look on his face was priceless. I was also involved in the design of a unique guitar stand that won a ‘Best in Show’ award in America. I'm happy to work in an industry I enjoy and with a company I'm proud of.
