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Being located in Los Angeles, I have been exposed to some of the biggest names in the music business. So many of these people have by word of mouth, helped me to get established in the vintage guitar business. Tom Petty, Richie Sambora, Dave Amato, John 5, Robbie Robertson, George Harrison, and so many more recommended me to their friends. I believe word of mouth is always the finest endorsement.
In my early days in Miami, band members Bobby Caldwell and Bobby Jabo hipped me to the differences between vintage guitars and guitars that were currently being made. Mr. John Black and G. L. Styles were the go-to repairman. They took the time to answer my questions and arm me with a little knowledge about vintage guitars. When I arrived in LA, Milt Owens did the same. All these folks recommended me to their friends and colleagues. This helped me in getting established, and it created a customer base.
If I have left anyone out, please forgive me. I will always be grateful for all the help I have received, and as anyone knows, you just can’t do it alone.
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When it comes to technical stuff, I guess you would say I’m a technophobe. I resisted being on the Internet for as long as humanly possible. My son, Jordan, and my daughter, Sarah, live on the computer. My daughter has her own search engine optimization company. They both said I was a dinosaur, and I needed to get with it and give the store a large Internet presence, as well as develop our social media. I fought it, like a stubborn old mule.
Finally, I have to admit, I was wrong! Since developing our social media, business has improved remarkably. It also has given our international customers immediate access to our latest acquisitions. Our videos are approaching twenty million hits, and our subscriber base on our YouTube channel continues to grow by leaps and bounds. We also started doing videos of our celebrity customers, as well as young and up-and-coming talents. We also have done informational videos, as well as videos showing the usual hijinks that go on at the store. I had no idea how many people would be interested in our everyday goings-on here, but they are. My son, Jordan, has developed an Instagram following that is truly astounding. Thousands of people watch his every post and are interested in all of our latest acquisitions. The interest in these things is amazing to me.
The whole gang from Norman’s Rare Guitars, 18969 Ventura Boulevard, Tarzana, California. (Photo by Jen Angkahan)
To get with it, in the modern era, I’ve learned to trust the “natives.” By that, I mean the young people who have come of age during the computer era. Now with our store manager, Mark Agnesi, who is very Internet savvy, and also with Jen Angkahan, who handles the day-to-day Internet, Facebook, Twitter, and photography for the store, my son, Jordan, doing the social media, and my daughter, Sarah, optimizing our website, I have to say things have really changed. Our profile is bigger than ever. We have even been recognized by NAMM (National Association of Musical Merchants) for our Internet presence.
Hosting our videos, we rotate between myself, Jordan, Mark, and Nick Dias. There are always some colorful characters in the store, including our talented luthier Joel Whitehead AKA “Ringo” and John Tucci, who does our tube amp and guitar repairs. Jen does all the editing and photography for our website and videos, and I believe we have an excellent team. We try to make the videos as much fun as possible, as well as adding some information along the way. I can honestly say, I never would have done any of it without the persistent badgering of my kids, and the kids who work with me, and I am very grateful to them for it.