We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Chase Gullett. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Chase below.
Chase, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today One of the things we most admire about small businesses is their ability to diverge from the corporate/industry standard. Is there something that you or your brand do that differs from the industry standard? We’d love to hear about it as well as any stories you might have that illustrate how or why this difference matters.
Being an instrument maker, I strive to provide a higher standard of quality than what can be found from the majority of mass production companies. My shop builds a very limited number of instruments each year most of which are commissioned by clients looking for an instrument that not only meets their needs musically and aesthetically but, also that hold an inherited magic, vibe, or mojo… Whatever you choose to call it at it’s core it’s the dedication to the craft, the blood sweat, and emotion that is transferred from my hands and into the “soul” of the instrument. Now I say this knowing there will be a onslaught of comments folks who “can’t tell the difference” between a “______” guitar and “_______” guitar and they’re right, “they” can’t but, those privileged few who have the gift of feeling and hearing the subtle nuances come to life when the note bloom to life with an open warmth that’s felt as much as it is heard and the fingers move effortlessly across the fretboard while feeling the body of the instrument resonate in their hands, those special few are who I work with. They have an appreciation for what a decades worth of dedication to the pursuit of creating something greater than the sum of its parts can produce for them. For many years I have ran a successful repair shop and when you’ve had a few thousand instruments from all ends of the spectrum regarding price and quality you pick up a few things. Things like what electronic components last for decades and what ones last seasons, how a half of a degree in a neck pocket is the difference between dead notes and clean ringing sustain. How a thick finish can act as a dampener while a razor thin finish allows the wood to ring out. How poorly finished frets can “drag” while bending notes. By taking this experience I’ve been able to hone my skills to be able to produce consistent results in not only the instruments I make but also in taking stock instruments and refining them to be the most responsive and playable versions they can be.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
We grew up in a very rural part of Ohio and I always found myself looking for something to do. Taking things apart and putting them back together just to see how they worked. It didn’t matter if it was a bicycle or a lamp I needed something to do. Eventually I became obsessed with guitars which only made that curiosity grow. Being a quick learner I spent many years working in various fields from , spraying finish on aquarium stands, to forming sheet metal for mobile command units, outfittng news vans, to building large scale trade show displays. With each of these the opportunity for a lifetime career ways present but, I always eventually grew bored and moved on to find a new set of skills, that is until I started building instruments. I had finally found something that allowed me to create something I was truly passionate about, something that allowed me to pull up that awkward teenager who loved to design and draw but, now armed with the refined skills of a young adult. I had the ability to take an idea apply it to paper and see it through until the end. The possibilities were endless and I grew hungry. Slowly building my first few instruments in the late nights and weekends, I eventually found myself unable to quench the desire to focus solely on luthiery, and in 2015 I took my last paycheck, bid farewell to the cushioned position of employee and started my company. Now here is where you all are expecting to read a triumphant story of overnight success but I gotta be brutally honest it was tough. The first year I made something like $8000 for the year, a point at which most people would learn their lesson and immediately go crawling back to the comfort of a steady job. Not this guy though. I toughed it out with the unflinching support of my wife and continued on. Crossing state lines to show my instruments at guitar expos and picking up repair jobs from the local music shop. Fast forwarding through years of small wins and hard work I finally found my way out of the garage and into downtown.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
Social media…. Man what a tough topic to talk about. For.me it’s very much a double edged sword. One the one hand you want to share yourself with the whole world, your work, your products , your journey but in the other hand your also exposing yourself to those who would attempt to copy your work and a false sense of connection. While I try very hard to offer a look inside my world through our Instagram and Facebook pages in the form of pictures and self made videos. It’s an ever-changing platform. I think it was originally an excellent place for creators to be but, I feel like it’s becoming harder to stay in the algorithms when competing against large companies with teams dedicated to making exceptional content. I try very hard to always engage with our audience and it is always appreciated when our followers share aand engage with us. Nothing works better than word of mouth advertising and I think social media is a great way for people to support small businesses, even if it’s just sharing content or commenting, it helps, a lot.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Consistently delivering quality work. It took a long time to build our reputation and I fully believe it’s from our customers sharing their experiences. It’s so easy to find a bad review online because everyone enjoys sharing the salacious details of being done wrong but, it’s hard to get someone to go out of their way to sing the praises of a job well done. I think our customers are who we owe that reputation to, we take the time to connect with them and make sure their needs are met and I think they do appreciate it and share that experience with their friends and colleagues. While we tend to have a waitlist of work because of it, I think people continue coming back and also bring in new clients because they know when they pickup their instrument it’s just going to be right. We’re not the cheapest shop, we’re not the fastest shop but, our clients know it’s worth the wait for exceptional work.
Contact Info:
- Website: Gullettguitar.com
- Instagram: GullettGuitarCo
- Facebook: GullettGuitarCo
Image Credits
Bobby and Isolda photography