It’s no secret that retail trends are changing. More and more people are shopping exclusively online, leaving the brick-and-mortar model behind. While these shopping trends are alarming in most industries, they should be shockingly concerning in the music products arena. The disheartening number of local music stores that have closed in the last five years is evidence of this. In an industry that depends on the touch, feel, and emotional connection to an inanimate object, the disappearance of brick-and-mortar music stores would be no less than a catastrophic loss to all musicians. I plead for the case of the local music store – the unsung hero of all local musicians. It is time to actively support and recognize those small businesses across the country that have supported teachers, educators, beginning students, and professional musicians.
I present the case for the local music store – the ones we grew up with, the store where we rented our first instrument, the store where we browse sheet music and maybe took lessons. The local music store that donates every year to your local music programs, the music store who know teachers individually and knows the challenges faced on a seasonal and annual basis. I present the case for the music stores that attend your festivals and shows, that donate for ad space in your programs, and that carry specific products you request for your students. I present the case for the local music store that picks up, completes, and drops off your instrument repairs, provides clinicians and educational resources, and who even sponsors events and students in support of your program. I present the case for the underdog – the music store that doesn’t have unworldly financial resources, the store who is likely owned by or was started by a musician, employs local musicians and retired band directors, and supports local musicians in every stage of their journey. I implore you to support your local small business owner who struggled, but made it through COVID, who reaches out to local school programs to find ways to help. This rare jewel and pillar of the arts community in your area – that’s the story that needs to be told more.
It’s impossible to ignore the advertisements and marketing campaigns of “the big guys” – they take out full page ads in music magazines and plaster their name and brands all over social media. While these advertisements are compelling, what’s more compelling is “the little guy” who, rather than spending their money on advertisements, is using their business funds to support local music programs. The store, with limited funds, might look old and outdated, but can tell you the name of every band director at the local high school for the last fifty years. Without the “little guys”, these safe havens of artistic expression, where would musicians find their “village?” Think of all that would be lost if these music stores were to disappear. Nowhere to test play instruments, nowhere to meet with a repair technician, nowhere to discuss the difference in mouthpieces with a product specialist and to actually handle the product in person, nowhere to sit down and noodle around on the guitar of your dreams until it becomes the guitar in your living room.
There was an article published recently in this magazine, well, less of an article and more of a glorified advertisement, touting the benefits and perks of working with a national music supply company. The textual advertisement spoke of its far-reaching marketing campaigns, product accessibility, and knowledgeable sales staff. All good things, right? But it got me thinking. Can school music education really be supported by a national music store? Are the needs of music teachers across the country so generic that a “one size fits all” can really suffice? Or are the needs of our educators individual and specific, like those of their students? Are district and school requirements so vast and varied that putting all your eggs in one basket may seem like a good solution now, but have far lasting negative consequences later? I submit that this will likely be the case. So, I plead; shop local, shop small businesses, before they disappear.
