Music Retail
John W. Ward began working in the music industry as a piano salesman in the late 1950s, before working for the Sherman Clay store chain in 1961. After earning a position as one of the company’s top salesman, John was asked to help sell home organs, which were just coming into popularity. Years...
Donald Johnson was known throughout the industry as DJ. He began working in music retail in 1958 in the San Jose, California, area before joining Coast Wholesale in 1961. It was an interesting and historic time to begin calling on retail stores in the San Francisco Bay Area. The folk music boom was...
Scott Mandeville is a well regarded band instrument repairman who has developed into a noted teacher and expert, serving other repairman through his classes, sessions and writings for NAPBIRT (the National Association of Professional Band Instrument Repair Technicians). Scott is the owner of Tim’s...
Gary Burgett and his brother Kirk established PianoDisc out of their piano retail store in Sacramento, California in the late 1970s. Gary was a pianist and music teacher with a successful studio of his own, and Kirk was a skilled piano technician and rebuilder. The store, Burgett Pianos, sold a...
Eddie Kramer began his long career as a record salesman in the San Francisco Bay Area before opening his own record store in the 1960s. As the Beatle Boom began, Eddie was selling a few guitars and some accessories, which were about 10% of his business at the San Carlos-based Eddie Kramer’s World...
Gary Wineroth is the president of the Guitar Showcase in San Jose, California, one of the best loved music retailers in the music products industry. With a historic past, the store has created a special position within the industry and for its generations of customers. Gary takes great pride in the...
Charlotte Atkinson is an organist extraordinaire! Showing an aptitude for music early on, Charlotte continued with formal education earning Bachelor and Masters degrees in music. At San Diego State University, she first met her husband, William, in Howard Brubeck's theory class. In her junior year...
John Maher began his career as an employee of a retail store in Illinois before joining the sales team at St. Louis Music Supply. He worked for the wholesaler for 11 years and traveled to dealers, creating programs and promotions to help them with sales while at the same time developing new and...
Gayle Beacock and her brother are second-generation music storeowners with a flair for business and a passion for encouraging music making. Gayle’s parents started Beacock Music to build relationships with band directors, a position her father held for many years. Gayle brought new and creative...
Mike Ladd was one of the first music retailers in the United States to provide custom-made guitars. He had three locations in Memphis, the last of which was right across the street from Graceland, Elvis Presley’s famed mansion. In fact, Mike made a custom guitar for Elvis, along with many other...