A couple of months ago, a close friend of mine had to close his music store in downtown Martinez.
He had run the store for about 9 years, and it had become a treasured part of our downtown. Remember in the Andy Griffith show, where Floyd’s Barber Shop is where folks would hang out and shoot the breeze? Well, in Martinez, Good Stuff Guitar Shop was a social center.
We actually referred to it as the “Guitarber Shop”!
We actually referred to it as the “Guitarber Shop”!
Folks would drop in anytime they were open (and sometimes, even when they weren’t) and there’d always be folks you know, talking about what’s going on, who’s doing what, who’s playing where and with whom.
If you dropped by a half hour before they opened, there was often a couple of folks hanging around, waiting for the owner to show up. My dog knew very well he would get a dog biscuit when we go in – a big one!
There was always an interesting array of new and used gear – guitars, mandolins, banjos, basses, amps and the like. The owner was a leftie and the shop had a generous collection of left-handed instruments. Local musicians would be picking up supplies like picks, strings, capos and tuners, and sometimes, they’d buy an instrument. I guess we didn’t buy enough instruments.
I actually feel guilt over the closing of this store. But I can only buy so many instruments – and they last a long time. Everybody I know has some instrument from Good Stuff, and some people were in a constant cycle of buying instruments, selling them and buying new ones. It still wasn’t enough.
Maybe the owner was too generous. I know he gave me great deals, which I was flattered to be offered, and pleased to accept. If there was a charity auction in town, Good Stuff always donated an instrument to be auctioned. The owner also sponsored a blues Open Mic – paying the house band out of his own pocket to ensure attendees got to play with top notch talent.
I think the economics of a small store in a small town, selling durable goods, is tough. I suspect a tool store would have similar challenges. The locals just couldn’t buy enough to make ends meet. Pressure from big box stores like Guitar Center probably hurt. Concord is only a few miles away from Martinez, but Concord’s 100,000+ residents are probably inclined to shop in their town, even though though their money will leave for Guitar Center’s corporate office, wherever that is.
The shop is now a tattoo shop, specializing in cosmetic tattoos. I don’t need one of those right now, but I sure could use a few sets of strings…
