Guitar Center
Encyclopedia
Guitar Center is the largest chain
of musical instrument
retailers in the world with 223 locations throughout the United States
. Its headquarters is in Westlake Village, California
.
Guitar Center's sister companies/subsidiaries incorporate Music & Arts Center, Musician's Friend, GuitarCenter.com, LMI, Giardinelli, Musician.com, Private Reserve Guitars, Woodwind and Brasswind and Harmony Central.
s for home and church use, it became a major seller of Vox
electric guitar
s and guitar amplifier
s, changing its name to The Vox Center in 1964. Toward the end of the 1960s, Vox—whose sales derived largely from its association with The Beatles
, who made extensive use of its amplifiers—fell in popularity as Marshall amplifier users Eric Clapton
and Bob Marley
captured musicians' imaginations. Accordingly, Mitchell once again changed the name, this time to Guitar Center.
The popularity of rock and roll
in the 1970s allowed Mitchell to open stores in San Francisco
and San Diego
, as well as several suburb
s of Los Angeles
. Ray Scherr, previously the general manager of the San Francisco store, purchased the company from Mitchell in the late 1970s. Scherr owned and operated it until 1996 from its Westlake Village headquarters.
Although synthesizer
-driven disco
and New Wave
pop sapped rock's audience in the late 1970s, the 1970s "guitar rock" revival led by Van Halen
and a concurrent influx of Japan
ese-produced instruments brought guitar sales to unprecedented levels. Guitar Center took full advantage of this sales bonanza, and by the end of the decade began an ambitious program of expansion across the entire United States. Using its size as leverage over the musical instrument business, it developed into the largest musical instrument retailer in the country, and made an initial public offering
of stock in 1997.
In 2005, Guitar Center, Inc., started The Guitar Center Music Foundation
, a nonprofit organization that supports music education.
Activision
partnered with Guitar Center in 2006; all purchases made during game play of Guitar Hero
, beginning with the second installment, are made in a virtual Guitar Center store.
On June 27, 2007, Guitar Center agreed to $1.9 billion buyout from Bain Capital
, totaling $2.1 billion including debt. The deal was led by Goldman Sachs
and amounted to a per-share price of $63, or a 26% premium on the June 26 closing price.
The deal was approved by shareholders on September 18, 2007, and closed October 9, 2007.
In mid-2009 Guitar Center opened a rehearsal studio facility in Woodland Hills, California. The eight studios with full backline range in size from 350-550 square feet.
Guitar Center also hosts annual events such as the Drum Off, King of the Blues, contests, and artist appearances throughout the nation.
In 2000, Guitar Center purchased mail order
and Internet
retail house Musician's Friend for $50 million, asserting that the merged company was the world's largest seller of musical instruments. Musician's Friend became a wholly owned subsidiary that was headquartered in Medford, Oregon
until 2011, when Musician's Friend's headquarters operations were gradually consolidated into Guitar Center's facilities in Westlake Village, California
.
In 2005, Guitar Center Inc. acquired Music & Arts Center, the largest school music dealer in the United States, and merged their subsidiary band and orchestral chain American Music Group into Music & Arts Center. Music and Arts Center was founded in 1952 in Bethesda
, Maryland
and sells band and orchestra instruments, guitars, keyboards, drum sets, printed sheet music, and related supplies.
In the summer of 2006, Guitar Center purchased four stores in Texas from the popular South Texas and Central/South American company, Hermes.
In February 2007, the direct response division of Guitar Center, Musician's Friend, purchased assets of the Indiana-based company Dennis Bamber, Inc., which included leading band and orchestra retailer, Woodwind and Brasswind, plus Music 123 and Lyons Music.
The Sunset Boulevard
location in Los Angeles hosts Hollywood's RockWalk, a hall of fame honoring musical artists. Artists are invited to place their handprints into cement blocks that are put on display at the Guitar Center.
Chain store
Chain stores are retail outlets that share a brand and central management, and usually have standardized business methods and practices. These characteristics also apply to chain restaurants and some service-oriented chain businesses. In retail, dining and many service categories, chain businesses...
of musical instrument
Musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
retailers in the world with 223 locations throughout the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Its headquarters is in Westlake Village, California
Westlake Village, California
Westlake Village is a planned community that straddles the Los Angeles and Ventura county line. The eastern portion is the incorporated city Westlake Village, located on the western edge of Los Angeles County, California. The city, located in the region known as the Conejo Valley, encompasses half...
.
Guitar Center's sister companies/subsidiaries incorporate Music & Arts Center, Musician's Friend, GuitarCenter.com, LMI, Giardinelli, Musician.com, Private Reserve Guitars, Woodwind and Brasswind and Harmony Central.
History
Founded in Hollywood by Wayne Mitchell in 1959 as The Organ Center, a retailer of electronic organElectronic organ
An electronic organ is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally, it was designed to imitate the sound of pipe organs, theatre organs, band sounds, or orchestral sounds....
s for home and church use, it became a major seller of Vox
Vox (musical equipment)
Vox is a musical equipment manufacturer which is most famous for making the Vox AC30 guitar amplifier, the Vox Continental electric organ, and a series of innovative but commercially unsuccessful electric guitars and bass guitars...
electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
s and guitar amplifier
Guitar amplifier
A guitar amplifier is an electronic amplifier designed to make the signal of an electric or acoustic guitar louder so that it will produce sound through a loudspeaker...
s, changing its name to The Vox Center in 1964. Toward the end of the 1960s, Vox—whose sales derived largely from its association with The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, who made extensive use of its amplifiers—fell in popularity as Marshall amplifier users Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
and Bob Marley
Bob Marley
Robert Nesta "Bob" Marley, OM was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and musician. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead singer for the ska, rocksteady and reggae band Bob Marley & The Wailers...
captured musicians' imaginations. Accordingly, Mitchell once again changed the name, this time to Guitar Center.
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
in the 1970s allowed Mitchell to open stores in San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
and San Diego
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, as well as several suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
s of Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. Ray Scherr, previously the general manager of the San Francisco store, purchased the company from Mitchell in the late 1970s. Scherr owned and operated it until 1996 from its Westlake Village headquarters.
Although synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
-driven disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
and New Wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
pop sapped rock's audience in the late 1970s, the 1970s "guitar rock" revival led by Van Halen
Van Halen
Van Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart...
and a concurrent influx of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese-produced instruments brought guitar sales to unprecedented levels. Guitar Center took full advantage of this sales bonanza, and by the end of the decade began an ambitious program of expansion across the entire United States. Using its size as leverage over the musical instrument business, it developed into the largest musical instrument retailer in the country, and made an initial public offering
Initial public offering
An initial public offering or stock market launch, is the first sale of stock by a private company to the public. It can be used by either small or large companies to raise expansion capital and become publicly traded enterprises...
of stock in 1997.
In 2005, Guitar Center, Inc., started The Guitar Center Music Foundation
Guitar Center Music Foundation
The Fender Music Foundation is a 501 non-profit organization that grants musical instruments and equipment to ongoing music education programs in the United States...
, a nonprofit organization that supports music education.
Activision
Activision
Activision is an American publisher, majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA. Its current CEO is Robert Kotick. It was founded on October 1, 1979 and was the world's first independent developer and distributor of video games for gaming consoles...
partnered with Guitar Center in 2006; all purchases made during game play of Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems and published by RedOctane for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It is the first entry in the Guitar Hero series. Guitar Hero was released on November 8, 2005 in North America, April 7, 2006 in Europe and June 15, 2006 in...
, beginning with the second installment, are made in a virtual Guitar Center store.
On June 27, 2007, Guitar Center agreed to $1.9 billion buyout from Bain Capital
Bain Capital
Bain Capital LLC is a Boston-based private equity firm founded in 1984 by partners from the consulting firm Bain & Company. Originally conceived as an early-stage, growth-oriented investment fund, Bain Capital today manages approximately $65 billion in assets, and its strategies include private...
, totaling $2.1 billion including debt. The deal was led by Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...
and amounted to a per-share price of $63, or a 26% premium on the June 26 closing price.
The deal was approved by shareholders on September 18, 2007, and closed October 9, 2007.
In mid-2009 Guitar Center opened a rehearsal studio facility in Woodland Hills, California. The eight studios with full backline range in size from 350-550 square feet.
Guitar Center also hosts annual events such as the Drum Off, King of the Blues, contests, and artist appearances throughout the nation.
Acquisitions
Mail order
Mail order is a term which describes the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote method such as through a telephone call or web site. Then, the products are delivered to the customer...
and Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
retail house Musician's Friend for $50 million, asserting that the merged company was the world's largest seller of musical instruments. Musician's Friend became a wholly owned subsidiary that was headquartered in Medford, Oregon
Medford, Oregon
Medford is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2010 US Census, the city had a total population of 74,907 and a metropolitan area population of 207,010, making the Medford MSA the 4th largest metro area in Oregon...
until 2011, when Musician's Friend's headquarters operations were gradually consolidated into Guitar Center's facilities in Westlake Village, California
Westlake Village, California
Westlake Village is a planned community that straddles the Los Angeles and Ventura county line. The eastern portion is the incorporated city Westlake Village, located on the western edge of Los Angeles County, California. The city, located in the region known as the Conejo Valley, encompasses half...
.
In 2005, Guitar Center Inc. acquired Music & Arts Center, the largest school music dealer in the United States, and merged their subsidiary band and orchestral chain American Music Group into Music & Arts Center. Music and Arts Center was founded in 1952 in Bethesda
Bethesda
Bethesda , originally referring to the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem , may also refer to:-United States:*Bethesda, Davidson County, North Carolina...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
and sells band and orchestra instruments, guitars, keyboards, drum sets, printed sheet music, and related supplies.
In the summer of 2006, Guitar Center purchased four stores in Texas from the popular South Texas and Central/South American company, Hermes.
In February 2007, the direct response division of Guitar Center, Musician's Friend, purchased assets of the Indiana-based company Dennis Bamber, Inc., which included leading band and orchestra retailer, Woodwind and Brasswind, plus Music 123 and Lyons Music.
Hollywood's RockWalk
Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard is a street in the western part of Los Angeles County, California, that stretches from Figueroa Street in downtown Los Angeles to the Pacific Coast Highway at the Pacific Ocean in the Pacific Palisades...
location in Los Angeles hosts Hollywood's RockWalk, a hall of fame honoring musical artists. Artists are invited to place their handprints into cement blocks that are put on display at the Guitar Center.