Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric J. Rodriguez.
Hi Eric, I’m so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, how can you bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Our business was opened in 1969 by my grandfather, Pete Rodriguez. For years, he operated the music shop out of the garage in the back of his house, catering to the underserved areas south of town. My father and uncle grew up working at the shop, which expanded to include a washroom, buffing room, paint booth, front counter, and room for several technicians.
After working a few years after college at AMD, my father left the corporate world and returned to run the family business. We lived with my grandparents in front of the shop, then moved next door. I started helping in the shop at around 12 years old. After the Army, I also worked at the shop while returning to school. My father and grandfather worked together from 1988 to 2020, when my father died suddenly from a heart attack.
My grandfather scaled back operations significantly after my father’s passing because he couldn’t manage the bookkeeping and account management that our business relies on. Covid’s impact on organized musical performance also forced him to let go of staff, some of whom had worked at the shop half their lives. At this point, it was communicated that Musical Instrument Service would close at the end of 2022.
In May of 2022, I finished the MBA program at Texas A&M San Antonio, and I decided if I was going to do it, this was the time to take over ownership and resurrect the business myself. On May 20, 2022, Musical Instrument Service, LLC was opened under my name, and I took over the shop.
I hired a good friend, a professional Marine Band musician and a seasoned auto-body technician, to help me generally manage the shop. His brother also works with us. Both of them learned the repair in-house from my grandfather and I. The four of us limped along the past year under extremely tight margins. However, we recently hired back one of our long-time pre-Covid employees and expect a much better fall season this year.
Updating a 55-year-old business was challenging, and we still have plenty to do. Still, we have been able to refresh the front counter area, update electrical systems, and purchase equipment to employ the newest techniques. We have also set up our social media presence and a new website.
Musical Instrument Service has always distinguished itself by being able to handle extensive repairs, difficult requests, and unique customizations easily because of the breadth of our tooling, depth of experience, and our repair-focused, large-scale facility. We can restore lacquer and silver-plated finishes, work on piccolos to sousaphones, and do all our work in-house.
Would it have been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Dealing with the continuation/aftermath of Covid has been difficult for everyone in the music industry. Our main clientele, the student musicians, were not playing or performing regularly, and the numbers involved are just starting to return. Also, although I grew up in this business and went through an MBA program, I am still learning to be a “business owner.” Transitioning from repairman to bookkeeper was challenging, but many little things needed to be done. Lists have become my best friend. I also get help from friends and professionals when needed. Marketing was another area that took work to get started with. We didn’t (still don’t) have any money to market ourselves, so we had to utilize social media. We are still figuring out what works best there, but we’ve established a good posting frequency. Our website is out now, too. That was a big win in our journey to showcase our legitimacy and raise brand awareness.
I appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
We specialize in all manner of Musical Instruments repair. Soldering, welding, dent removal, brass fabrication, re-paid, recork, chemical cleaning, ultrasonic cleaning, acid bath, lacquer finishing, silver-plating, buffing, you name it, we do it. My grandfather has been doing this for a long time, and I also grew up in the business. Over that time, we’ve worked on almost everything and picked up or made tools to do so effectively. Our reputation has followed us, and we have gotten work shipped to us from all parts of the US, including New York, Los Angeles, and Hawaii. We also get customers who regularly drive from Mexico, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and all over Texas to see us. Due to my VA rating and my time in the Army, we are a 100% service-disabled, veteran-owned musical instrument repair shop.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs, or other resources you think our readers should check?
The Rita Mulcahey, or RMC, PMP Exam Prep, was one of the resources I used when becoming a certified Project Manager, but it was one of the best books I’ve ever read. The methodology has been beneficial, and I apply it to everything. The QuickBooks and Gopayment apps have been essential for my daily business and record keeping. I also do a ton of YouTube learning regarding marketing and business best practices.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://hornrepairs.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/musicalrx/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MusicalInstrumentService
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTU4SF5NfPIO3IhrgyLR2ZQ
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/musical-instrument-service-no-title
