Last week, we learned that Guitar Center layed off a good chunk of executive employees, 40 to be exact, and the financial analysis did not look good.
In a new report on our sister site, Gear Gods, we learn things are getting way worse before they get better. Gear Gods reports the number of people canned is up from 40 to 180! There have been a lot of changes in the Guitar Center leadership and now, the whole company is being run by non-music people:
So, Guitar Center is barely a year under its new ownership, and less than two months under new corporate management, and reports from sources inside the company say that chaos is starting to break loose. The firings, which took place in two phases, included some people at the senior level, vice presidents and other assorted veterans. One former employee who was part of this most recent round of layoffs and who spoke to Gear Gods on the condition of anonymity tells us that Guitar Center is now a “company run by non-music people,” and that after the firings, our subsequent coverage, and Garland’s grim predictions, it’s a madhouse at their corporate HQ in Westlake.
Even worse? With no plans on paper for future growth, investors are pulling out big time:
Guitar Center’s secured bonds have been tanking since last July, and are taking a pretty consistent hit each day, according to data from the Financial Industry Regulation Authority. Just yesterday investors pulled $11 million out of the company, the kind of hit that is highly abnormal in this sort of bond market. It’s too early to call this a “run” on GC’s bonds, but it sure looks like a heck of a lot of people are starting to jump ship. And of course, once word starts to go around that the company’s not looking so hot, and that it’s a mess at the highest rungs of power, and then one investor pulls out… well, then another one pulls out, and then another, and another, and another, and another.
I highly recommend you head over to GearGods and read their entire report on how Guitar Center is turning into a sinking ship.
