Tell us a bit about your business?
I’m planning to open a center for musicians in Staunton called Queen City Music Exchange (QCME). The center will offer a significant selection of used, top-quality instruments and gear — including guitars, keyboards, drums, basses, amplifiers, pedals, and more. We’ll also have a convenient selection of accessories like strings, straps, tuners, picks, amplifier tubes, and woodwind reeds. Furthermore, QCME will fill a gap by providing rentals and repairs for school band and orchestra instruments.
Once the store gets going, we’re going to add a full schedule of music lessons, set up an in-house music studio, offer expert instrument service and repair, and build out a full-service venue for live music.
What makes you confident your brick-and-mortar store will succeed?
QCME is going to be more than a store: Our goal is to serve as a regional hub for hobbyists and semi-professional musicians, as well as music lovers. We want to become a destination for “all things music.”
The plan is to market the store as a warm and welcoming community center where musicians can buy, sell, try out, and exchange the kind of quality gear and instruments that isn’t typically offered in a big-box environment. We’ll encourage musicians to hang out, feel at home, jam, learn, and enjoy themselves. Once the studio and performance venue goes in, that sense of community and belonging is only going to be amplified.