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New Lakland Ownership

mgauge

mgauge

Dec 21, 2009
545
49
56
Chicago, IL
#1
Im sure there is a thread already about this, but I prefer my two cents. Just visited the Lakland shop yesterday on my trip home to Chicago. To all who are concerned, Lakland is in GOOD hands. Hanson, the purchaser of Lakland, used to work for Lakland, and he let me know all is good, nothing is going to change. He is actually 'relieved' that he purchased Lakland and not some conglomerate. I am relieved too.

They were very hospitable and it was just so cool to be able to geek out about bass. Im getting my new 5502 next week and Im looking forward to it. Long live LAKLAND.:hyper:
 
#4
mgauge said:
Im sure there is a thread already about this, but I prefer my two cents. Just visited the Lakland shop yesterday on my trip home to Chicago. To all who are concerned, Lakland is in GOOD hands. Hanson, the purchaser of Lakland, used to work for Lakland, and he let me know all is good, nothing is going to change.
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Of course... any new owner is definitely not going to tell you the company is screwed and new ownership are idiots either.

I tend to fall more along the line of 'prove to me things are the same or better'.


.
 
#7
mgauge said:
I see where u are coming from, but for the sake of argument, he's not just a new owner, he's a former employee, so he knows 'whats up'..
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Not just an employee, former VP. He's been helping manage the company for several years. And the company's been in financial straits since the beginning. See the article on their own website from Forbes Magazine...
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John
 
#8
stflbn said:
Of course... any new owner is definitely not going to tell you the company is screwed and new ownership are idiots either.

I tend to fall more along the line of 'prove to me things are the same or better'.
.
Click to expand...

FWIW, I had sent my DJ5 in for repair (twisted neck) the week of the changeover. Dan Lakin had offered me a deal to fix it. Not only did John hold to the deal, they turned it around amazingly fast. I had it back in my hands in just over a week (and I'm not in Chicago). I exchanged a couple emails with John in that time and he was not only very quick to respond, but very attentive and helpful with my inquiries.

I've dealt with Lakland a decent amount over the past few years, and in my limited dealings with the new ownership thus far, I have no reason to believe that they won't hold up the high level of quality and service that the Lakland name represents.
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c
 
#9
I just check out their site to read the Forbes articles... Wow very honest about details, numbers, etc.

I noticed that the model names have been changed... No more Duck Dunn, Glaub, Osborne, etc. I was never big on sig models so I the change is good... But I still want a black/rosewood DJ5 if I can find one.
 
#10
stflbn said:
Of course... any new owner is definitely not going to tell you the company is screwed and new ownership are idiots either.

I tend to fall more along the line of 'prove to me things are the same or better'.


.
Click to expand...
As someone who has dealt with Lakland quite a lot over the past several years and had a two-hour meeting with John and Bo a week after they took over (along with two fellow TBers and LOGers), here's my take.

The two of them couldn't have been more intimate with the company's inner workings for a very long time. Prior to becoming full-time employees in the late '90s/early '00s, they had known Dan for years and helped him out very early on. Even when they formed Hanson and became a separate company last year, their office was maybe 100 feet down the warehouse floor from the entrance to Lakland. And Hanson Guitars uses the same Cort factory as Lakland does for Skylines.

Beyond their backgrounds, they're not only saying all the right things, they're doing the right things so far. They've retained everyone who was there at the time of the acquisition and have brought former head luthier Carl Pedigo (who had started his own business in late '09 and still works out of the Lakland shop) back into the fold somewhat to help with R&D and warranty work. I've also heard a couple of very positive customer-service stories like chris' post-acquisition. And everything they have planned that they shared with us makes a lot of sense to me.

Sure, the proof will be in the pudding--the quality (and quality control) has to be there going forward, customer service has to be good, build times will hopefully come down, etc. But they've given me every reason to be optimistic.
 
#11
YCBass said:
I just check out their site to read the Forbes articles... Wow very honest about details, numbers, etc.

I noticed that the model names have been changed... No more Duck Dunn, Glaub, Osborne, etc. I was never big on sig models so I the change is good... But I still want a black/rosewood DJ5 if I can find one.
Click to expand...

Well, I'd say it's pretty neutral since, at least with the Duck, there's no signature or other markings on the bass to indicate it's a signature model. Maybe it's silly of me, but Duck Dunn's enthusiasm about the bass was what intrigued me about it in the first place. Now I'm definitely a Lakland believer. So maybe those signature models aren't so bad, after all.
 
#14
I echo 10000% what GregC said....

John and Bo love the brand and are doing everything in their power to maintain the excellent quality that was there prior and to improve the offerings (new models, new colors etc).....

We will see what they have to say when they get back from NAMM!
 
#17
OK, I've been out of the loop for a while. Someone fill me in.

When did the change happen?
Any reasons given for why?
Why did all the names of the sig basses change?
What's Dan up to now?
 
#18
John seemed to be running the company in the last couple of years, it would seem & Dan was not always around.

John knows how to run the company & understands what makes Lakland a great company. I doubt that will change.
 
#19
Barkless Dog said:
John seemed to be running the company in the last couple of years, it would seem & Dan was not always around.

John knows how to run the company & understands what makes Lakland a great company. I doubt that will change.
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+1 Having lived in Chicago for the last 10 years, and dealing with John several times during that time span, there is no doubt in my mind he is the right guy to run the show now. He's smart and knows the music/instrument business very well.
 
#20
There is no better two guys to have gotten ownership of Lakland than the Pirruccello brothers.


I was just down at Lakland this week and you do not know the passion that these two guys have for the Lakland brand.



And I spoke with Dan Lakin yesterday and he is all good about how things are going with the Lakland brand.
 

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