Hi Everyone,
best wishes to everyone who has been affected by the flood disaster.
In case you missed the last post on this page, I moved all of the
repaired and repairable instruments to higher ground and safety in the days before the flood. They are in a storage shed and are fine. So far I've been dealing with clearing and cleaning the shop, but I will sort out the instruments over the next week or so. Then either Lisa or I will call you regarding collection etc.
Your patience is very much appreciated.
I WILL be re-opening in the same place in Molesworth Street. The building is structurally sound, and I believe all of the tenants are going to return. We have a very good landlord (he's a guitar-player!) and we want to support him. The building is in the process of being cleaned and dried, and I am in the process of restoring the benches and shop fittings.
When the shop is clean and dry, and power and security are back, I will gradually move back in. Until that happens I should be able to deal via a "pop-shop" in the carpark of the building, or even do "home-deliveries" if required. Keep in touch with this "Journal" page for updates.
Back in 2005, when I knowingly opened a shop in a flood-prone town, I always had a contingency plan. Most of you reading this probably know that my "shop" is only open three (half) days a week. That's partly so that I can do some of the work without interruptions, but also so that not all of the guitars are in the shop at any given time.
This is the way it works: I do any repairs involving glue, noise, sawdust, spray-painting etc. in my workshop at home, and do the set-ups, wiring etc. at the shop in town. This means that perhaps half of the guitars I have booked-in are at the shop and half are at home. This way, if I DO have to evacuate the shop, it's not such a big job.
I've emptied the shop at least a dozen times since I've been here, every time there has been even a slight hint of danger. Sometimes the potential flood hasn't eventuated, but even then it hasn't been pointless - I've improved the system each time.
Compared to many businesses, my shop is relatively portable. I don't have huge machines or thousands of items of stock to move. Guitars are easily shifted, I put most of my parts and accessories into storage boxes after 2017, and I can move almost everything in five or six trips in the commodore wagon.
It works!
The next phase of this strategy is to figure out if I can afford to buy a Hiace (or similar) so that I can do it in one trip rather than six!
This time I lost less - I lost some parts and tools, my magazine collection, and all the office stuff (phone, modem, printer etc.). So not too bad. My little Epiphone test amp was also flooded, but it was back in 2017 and worked fine after it dried out for a few weeks!
By the way: electronic stuff can often survive inundation. It pays to keep it and have it checked out, rather than chucking it away.
Guitars can survive too. Today I saw an expensive Martin that had come apart at almost every seam, and it is probably repairable. I'm certainly going to give it a go.
Ironically, the cheaper guitars that are held together with epoxy and finished in thick polyester, often survive better.
So. I will re-open in Lismore.
Lismore has been good to me. In 2005, after over 20 years working as a guitar-repairer in Sydney, almost always out of other people's shops, I opened up my own guitar-repair shop in the centre of Lismore. This was a huge leap of faith, but I was immediately accepted and covered the rent in the first month and began to sneak into the black soon after.
The guitar-players of Lismore, the general region including Byron and Ballina, Mullumbimby, Murwillumbah, Tweed, and even folk as far away as Grafton, Armidale, Tamworth, Stanthorpe, Gold Coast, Coffs etc., have trusted my experience at this doing this stuff. as well as the old clients from Sydney, the Blue Mountains, and even as far away as Indonesia and Fiji (!). I thank you all.
And, if you've got this far into the post...we need to consider Russell.
Russell's Music was flooded, but so was his home.
Russell Adams has been a stalwart supporter of both the professional and the amateur music scenes in Lismore for over 20 years. Russell has lost a LOT in this flood.
Planet Music too. We need a proper music shop in this town, and Peter has made a huge commitment to that. A town as big as ours needs a music shop like Planet.
Hopefully they will both re-open and everyone will support them.
So. More updates to follow. Phone's not working, so please contact me via email: ak@andrewknightguitars.com.au
Otherwise we'll be in touch.
Keep well, and best wishes whatever your experience of this awful event.
AK
