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GUITAR INDUSTRY SPECIAL FASHION STRAPS
EXTREME STRAPS
The way Tim Pratt talks
about guitar straps,
you’d think he’s selling
neckties or pocket
squares.
“We like to make a big deal
about picking out a strap to
match your style — or your guitar
if you have no style,” joked
the president of Dietze Music
in Omaha, Neb.
He called straps “a statement”
for guitarists and bassists,
whether they’re opting for
“plain or exotic” models. “We
like to encourage our customers
to get excited about picking
one out — or better yet, two or
three,” Pratt said.
He’s not alone. Guitar straps
have always been a fashion statement,
and in this burgeoning
era of consumer customization,
manufacturers are going to new
design extremes. Savvy retailers
have taken note, stocking
a medley of straps to meet the
styles and musical sensibilities
of every customer. And many
of the more fashion-forward
models boast high ticket prices.
“What is definitely a growing
category in the music industry
is incorporating color
and individuality to product
designs,” said Virginia Castro,
co-founder of strap maker Get’m
Get’m Wear.
“I compare it to shirts,” said
L.J. Mechem, owner of LM Products.
“If everyone just needed
something to cover themselves,
we would have one color shirt.
But that would be a pretty boring
way to express one’s self.
A strap is an expression of the
guitar player’s soul.”
70 I MUSIC INC. I JULY 2012
THE FASHION FACTOR
Johnna Lynn tied this fashionstrap
trend to a growing demand
for American-made goods,
along with the rise of “the handmade
and direct-from-artisan
market.” She even launched
her strap and purse company,
Copperpeace, in 2008 with the
tag line “music fashion.”
“The quality of design that
comes with a U.S.A.-made product
is an element that doesn’t go
unnoticed with both our guitar
straps and the new purses we’re
crafting,” Lynn said. “Now, I
have customers actually send
me personal e-mails when they
have a new instrument on the
way and want to start planning
a strap. It never ceases to amaze
me how into the strap musicians
can be.”
Fellow boutique strap maker
Jen Tabor, head of Souldier, also
singled out stylish straps as a
core component of her business.
“Straps, just like guitars, can
make a statement about style,
tone, the type of music you play,
and they create beauty for the
owner,” she said.
But the trend is hardly limited
to smaller shops. Harvey
Levy, vice president of strap giant
Levy’s Leathers, approaches
strap design “the same way a
fashion designer approaches the
necktie.” He even gave a seminar
to U.S. and Canadian retailers
titled “The Guitar Strap as
Clothing — Fashion Forward.”
“It is the one area where a
man is free to be flamboyant,”
he said.
‘A LID FOR EVERY POT’
Souldier designed a
signature strap for
Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy.
The company’s head,
Jen Tabor, called the
strap “one of our
most popular.”
Photo by Zoran Orlic
quick look at Levy’s less
A conventional designs reveals
the diversity of this segment.
The MG17DP line features
what Levy called “street-savvy
designs,” including one model
that bears the words “louder,
faster, harder” and another
adorned with skulls. The MSS2
and MSS3 lines, which feature
garment leather and suede, respectively,
deliver what Levy
called “timeless elegance.” And
the M8HTV series is hippie-chic.
The customer base for this
product is equally diverse. “The
people who buy these are a pretty
broad group,” Pratt said. “We
sell a lot to church musicians,
country folks, metal players,
punk rockers, female rockers
and acoustic musicians.”
Pam Aalbers, accessory buyer
for Tacoma, Wash.-based Ted
Brown Music, has also found
the customer base difficult to
generalize. “For instance, the
bullet-studded strap may appeal
to the business-suit guy as
much as to the young girl in a
ponytail.”
“The bottom line is there
is a lid for every pot, and each
person has their own unique
style and preferences, so any
strap has the potential to be a
best-seller,” said Brian Vance,
director of product management
for Planet Waves, a division of
D’Addario.
Still, straps with attitude
tend to be the category’s biggest
hits. Vance said Planet Waves
has done “really well” with patterns,
including stars, checkerboards
and flames, “many of
which are now staples.” Pratt
mentioned that “embossed
leather” models and “anything
with painted artwork” tend to
be best-sellers at Dietze Music.
Likewise, Mechem called his
company’s Scraps line “really
hot.” LM Products’ website