One of the most esteemed guitar brands, owned by Mr Juszkiewic and David Berryman, could be filing for bankruptcy soon.
According to a report from the Nashville Post, the company are facing a $375million debt repayment, which must be completed in less than six months. Furthermore, Gibson guitars have racked up $145million in bank loans, and Bill Lawrence, the company’s CFO, recently left after staying in his role for less than a year.
As a result, the company plan to focus on profitable products, rather than those that “have little upside in the future”.
However, a demand for guitars has been gradually diminishing in recent years. In 2017, The Washington Post reported that guitar sales have dropped from an annual 1.5 million to 1 million over the past decade. Nashville dealer George Gruhn, who’s sold guitars to Eric Clapton, Paul McCartney and Taylor Swift, said, “There are more makers now than ever before in the history of the instrument, but the market is not growing.”
He added, “I’m not all doomsday, but this – this is not sustainable.” Gruhn also remarked that, perhaps, “What we need is guitar heroes.”
Famed for its Les Paul model, Gibson guitars have been popularised through artists such as Slash, BB King and Santana, cementing it as an iconic guitar for rockstars. Last year, Slash was appointed as a global brand ambassador for the company.
