We were lucky to catch up with Gavin Haley recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Gavin thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

Becoming successful at anything can be a pretty large challenge; there are a plethora of facets that go into giving you the best shot at success. Oftentimes, people will begin working towards a goal without actually realizing just how much work may be involved, then get surprised when reality hits.

When deciding on a business name, I knew I wanted one that brings this truth to light. The name needed to convey that this guitar school is for people who know that mastery doesn’t come overnight; it’s for people who are willing to do the work needed to ensure their own success. And if someone wants that success, but isn’t sure how to get there, then the name needed to convey that I could show them how to reach the heights that they aspire to.

Thus, the Apex Guitar Institute was christened.

Gavin, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My own musical education started pretty early. I began, like many, in a full band setting during elementary school playing the saxophone. This continued all the way through college but, after graduation, the practicing dropped off pretty quickly (likely due to having no long-term plan answering the question about WHY I should continue practicing.) After a few years, I began feeling the itch to fill that musical void with something and decided on the guitar. After a while of my own dedicated practice, I learned that I had a particular collection of experiences that allowed me to help others reach their own musical goals.

These goals can be vary wildly from person to person. However, regardless of the end goal my students have in mind, there is one unifying step: becoming an excellent player.

The challenge, then, is creating a setting where many people can work towards their own goals while in a group setting. This is what I specialize in: helping students identify what they want to achieve, and giving them the blueprints to get there (and the whole experience wrapped up in a nice bow of rock and metal music.)

Most instructors pawn off the duty of selecting what to practice to the student, who may or may not know what would be the best use of their time. My goal is to do all the thinking for the student; all they have to focus on is PLAYING!

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

It’s always dangerous to become too set in a particular way of doing things. Strictly holding to particular processes means that when something truly game-changing comes along, you won’t be open to accepting that thing as a better option (or you accept it too late and fall behind.)

I experienced a great example of this when it came to how my guitar classes are structured. Growing up, one of the core pillars of musical instruction pushed was private lessons. Everyone had a 1-on-1 session with an instructor, with the idea being that 1-on-1 instruction means more improvement for that student.

What has been discovered since that time is this: fun and enthusiasm will keep a student motivated for longer and lead to more progress overall.

And what leads to more fun for students? Learning in small classroom settings where they still get specialized, tailored instruction, but they get to experience it with a group of peers doing the same thing.

Not only that, but teaching in small groups means I can teach more students at a time, boosting income significantly. Teaching small groups is a win-win situation that any aspiring teachings cannot afford to pass up.

Implementing this idea can truly take your business to the next level.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

When it comes to getting a business up and running, it is often said that you should not perfect the process before you get started, or you will never begin.

I’m a firm believer in this mindset.

You want to get going on the business asap. Part of that means getting creative and minimizing overhead and maintenance costs so that there is as little of an upfront cost as possible. The less you need to gather beforehand, the quicker you can get started.

With a little brainstorming (and a lot of calling around,) I was able to trim down startup costs to just a few bills: monthly rent (bills included,) website upkeep, and a custom email domain.

Now, something to keep in mind is that service industries are inherently less expensive to start than other types of businesses. For example, I don’t have any inventory that I need to purchase and maintain. There is no manufacturing machinery I need to purchase to get started either.

Everyone has knowledge that they can monetize as a service. This is something I would recommend keeping in mind for whoever out there would like to start their own business one day.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.apexguitarinstitute.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ApexGuitarInstitute/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ApexGuitarInstitute/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ApexGuitarInst
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ApexGuitarInstitute

Image Credits
Dana Estes Photography