Music lovers and thinkers

Another year and another non-Black Friday at GFS. Why? Because Black Friday does not sit very comfortably with our ethics or business philosophy. We believe in responsible, sustainable consumption and, above all, we know that buying a guitar requires time and reflection. Compulsive buying, as well as being unsustainable, is incompatible with our philosophy of quality, personalized advice and pre and post-sales service.

Black Friday traditionally served as a bridge between American Thanksgiving and the weekend that marks the beginning of the holiday spending season. There is some debate as to significance of the word ‘black’ in this context, but one thing seems certain: the intention of this spending bonanza was never to keep the customer (or independent business) in the black. Rather, it was to help to boost the profits of big businesses and their shareholders.

No bridge in Brooklyn for sale

We also know our customers well. You are only too aware that many of the goods on sale at this time of year were pre-bought just for the occasion. Genuine discounts are few and far between, and many of these low-cost goods are budget imitations. At GFS, our instruments are all made in Spain by our trusted manufacturers. We pay honest prices for these all year, and we know that they, in turn, take care of their workers and reward them fairly for their labour.

Sustain(ability)

Of course we understand that some products lend themselves more easily to sales like Black Friday – and appreciate that budgets can be tight. But a guitar is not fast fashion, nor a tech product that may soon become obsolete. For this reason, buying a guitar should ideally be a slower and more gentle process. At GFS, we spend much of our time responding to customer’s requests for advice: a guitar from Spain will be at your side for years to come so it’s essential we match you to the right instrument.

Which is very good news for the planet, as well as for your pocket. Because investing in a quality product that only gets better with time, means using up fewer of the world’s resources. And you can’t put a price on that.