_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sweetwater
From fresh amateurs to some of the most iconic names in entertainment, any musician will be familiar with Sweetwater, the world’ s leading music technology and instrument retailer. Sweetwater has been dedicated to helping musicians and exceeding their expectations since its foundation in 1979, and this approach to customer service has seen the business evolve into the top music retailer in the US.
Based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Sweetwater employs around 2500 people and serves over 13 million customers, with its annual revenue projected to reach $ 1.8 billion this year. The company carries over 100,000 products for musicians and creators, including guitars, drums, instruments, recording technology, concert equipment, microphones, speakers, lights, video cameras, and podcasting equipment.
President and CEO, Mike Clem, sits down with Retail Merchandiser to share more details about how Sweetwater maintains its industry-leading position.“ We’ re blessed to serve a wide range of musicians from students to rock stars, and we’ re known for our huge product assortment, great pricing, and lots of value-added perks,” Mike opens.“ Around one third of our business is B2B sales, where we put sound equipment into schools, houses of worship, and sporting or concert venues. This separates us from other music stores because of the level of complexity and expertise required.
“ However, what makes us truly unique is our 600‘ Sales Engineers’, who are true industry experts. We recruit from all over the country and each new Sales Engineer goes through our 13-week Sweetwater University training program before they even interact with a customer. Each customer is matched with an expert, enabling us to get to know you, understand your goals, and nurture the relationship over time to deliver the highest level of trust and personalized service.”
retail-merchandiser. com 37