Hi everyone,
it goes without saying that 2020 has been a weird year.
When Covid kicked off, and none of us knew what that would really mean, I had a huge in-coming of work. Lots of big jobs: major restorations and re-builds, lots of regular jobs - refrets, set-ups etc; and lots of guitars that had clearly been stored in the loft for 20 years or more.
During April and May I booked in more work than I have ever seen. At that time, the powers-that-be were suggesting that we'd all be "locked-down" for six months and that we'd all better find some kind of indoor activity to replace the outdoor and social stuff that we were used to.
Clearly guitar-playing was a popular choice!
I booked in work to cover the possibility of this extended lockdown.
But, as "lockdowns" were lifted, my shop went back to "normal". "Normal" for me is "constantly busy", and I've been at least as busy these last few months as I've ever been, so consequently many of those long-term jobs are still on the bench.
I appreciate your trust in me, and the acknowledgement that after almost 40 years doing this gig I’m actually pretty good at it, but this DID leave me with a big backlog of work.
Now I have two options:
Plan A: Take advantage of the situation, cut down on the work I take in, and charge a lot more for each job.
Or, Plan B: don’t take ANY new work in for a month or so and spend the time catching up on the backlog.
Plan B will take us through Christmas and my usual two week break. This break is essential for family and recuperation reasons, and is non-negotiable! Plan B is also the ethically and professionally correct option!
At this point, three weeks or so out from Christmas, the likelihood of me getting any but the smallest jobs done before the break is pretty small.
As always I will give priority to those of you who are working musicians or students, but all (or most) of you should have back-up instruments.
So, for the most part, we are looking at early 2021 for most new bookings.
If you have repair work that you require then please call me. I will have some time available before Christmas, but it will be limited.
Hopefully 2021 will be a bit more regular, predictable, and “normal” than 2020!
Andrew
