Taylor Guitars

A Short History of Taylor Guitars

Taylor Guitars Manufacturing Line

Taylor Guitars, having specialized in the mid to upper end guitar market, has promptly become one of the leaders in the industry. They have more than 60 special guitar models and sell more than 40,000 instruments each year, ranging in cost for $10,000 down to about $1,200.

Their guitars are known for ease of playing and amazing tone. Some of their guitars are owned by such famous guitarists as Paul McCartney, Neil Young and many others. The company, which is still privately owned, is run by Kurt Listua and Bob Taylor.

Beginnings of Taylor Guitars:

Taylor started producing their first instruments back in the summer of 1973. It was during that summer that Bob Taylor and Kurt Listua began working at the same music shop, the American Dream, which was located in Lemon Grove, CA.

One year after these guys were hired, the owner of the music shop sold the shop to Kurt Listua, Bob Taylor, and a third man, Steve Schemmer. In October of 1974 they took possession of the store and it was renamed the Westland Music Company. The three owners continued to repair instruments as well as constructing a few that they sold from the shop. Since Bob was the chief luthier of the guitar shop, they decided to call the line of guitars, Taylor guitars.

In 1976, Taylor Guitars were outsourced to outside dealers for the first time ever. The market for guitars had hit rock bottom just as the three gentlemen began selling their guitars and the market continued to be very complicated during the remainder of the 1970′s.

Company Struggles:

The company continued to struggle during the early part of the 1980′s, making only about 10 guitars a week. In order to speed up the guitar making process the company took out a loan for the purchase of more efficient equipment. The next year, they had constructed up such a large backlog of instruments, Kurt went on the road to market instruments.

The first breakthrough came in 1984 when music artist Prince needed a new 12-string guitar and he hired Bob Taylor to make one for him. Although Price would not allow Bob Taylor to display his logo on the headpiece of the guitar, word spread quickly amidst the guitar community and soon they were making guitars for many other recording artists.

A New Location For Taylor

Taylor Guitars

In 1987 after outgrowing their current facility due to such speedy growth, Taylor moved to a new 5,000 s.f. manufacturing plant. They reached production rates of approximately 50 guitars per week by 1988 with a staff of 35.

Growth continued during these years and by 1992 they again had to pull up roots – this time to a new 25,000 foot facility in El Cajon, CA. Sales of $5 million was reached in 1993. This was partially due to the increased curiosity in acoustic guitars.

Introduction of the “Baby Taylor”

The Baby Taylor was a scaled-down version of their popular acoustic guitars and sold for under $500. This guitar was rolled out in 1996. This little guitar was a huge success as it sold over 1,000 units the first year of production.

At the same time, the Grand Auditorium model was additionally introduced and was dubbed by Bob Taylor as the “greatest we’ve ever created.” Critics agreed and the company sold more than $20 million that year.

Taylor Guitars – More Recently

Taylor Guitars

The next decade was a stage of development for the business in both their product line and sales. A custom guitar was presented to President Clinton at the Inaugural Ball in Washington D.C. in 1997. In 1998, continueddevelopment forced the company to construct 44,000 square feet next to their current facility.

1999 proved to be a huge year for Taylor Guitars. The business introduced their NT technology neck during this year, which united the neck system of guitar while allowing the string tension to remain the same. The new neck design was a big success with guitar players and was named “Product of the Year” by Music Trades Magazine.

The Signature Line of guitars has also been added by Taylor in which their instruments are signed by such famous musicians as Jewel, Clint Black, Kenny Loggins and many others. More than 40,000 guitars are manufactured by Taylor each year and of that, hundreds of guitars are given to schools each year.

From such humble beginnings more than 25 years ago, Taylor Guitars has grown to become one the most recognized names in guitar making in the country.