June 07, 2022 I Event
GAMA Reunites at The NAMM Show
Teaching Guitar Workshop’s Glen McCarthy
For the first time in more than 28 months, the Guitar & Accessories Marketing Association (GAMA) held its annual member meeting in person at the Hilton Anaheim Hotel in advance of The 2022 NAMM Show on Thursday, June 2. To kick it off, Dennis Webster of C.F. Martin & Co., had attendees share what they’d missed most while being apart for so long. Skip Beltz, director of product management at Martin, perhaps said it best: “I miss all the rest of the people who used to be at this meeting, but I’m happy to see those that are.”
Teaching Guitar Workshop’s (TGW) Glen McCarthy spoke on the program, which, according to GAMA, has reached over a million students. He said its virtual component is “here to stay” and added it’d just recruited a student in Poland. The association introduced its new board — which will be in place until The 2023 NAMM Show next April — and its new members, which include Gibson, Augustine, MIRC and Musico.
To close things out, Webster asked attendees what GAMA can do to help new guitarists keep playing. Doreen Skopp, vice president of Inside Track International, suggested what’s needed are ambassadors.
“What actually helps our community is a guitar hero like Taylor Swift,” she said. “You know what Taylor Swift has done [to get] women and actually young girls to play guitar?”
Other suggestions included working with the dealer network to pay for a set amount of free lessons for new students or getting learning platforms involved with GAMA.
