We are excited to feature Backbeat Music as our Shop Small dealer of the week!

Check out our interview with store owner, Greg Arnold, and don’t forgot to shop small!

AU: When and how did you get started selling ukuleles?

GA: The year I opened my store 1995, I stocked 2 or 3 buy didn’t sell very many.  It just wasn’t a market I was interested in until 5 years ago, the requests really started coming in and I knew I had to act quick.

I also remember seeing on youtube, Jake Shimaburkuro do his version of The Beatles Song.  Soon after that I knew it could be big.  But, like many trends, it takes about 5 years to reach “Middle America.”

AU: Tell us a fun fact about your business?

GA: For the first 15 years my store was located next door to my wife’s florist business, Posey Peddler.  We lived above the flower shop for 9 years before we decided it was time to buy a house.

AU: How do you display your ukuleles?

GA: We display them like guitars.  On a metal slatwall style system right next to the my Taylor guitars.  The ukuleles are really the first thing you see when you walk in.

AU: Have you noticed any new trends in ukulele customer buying habits lately?

GA: Tenors are getting more popular.  I have never sold many or had many requests for sopranos.  Concerts are still the best selling size.  I joke with customers who ask about Baritone size and say, “yes we have guitars right over here.”

AU: What kind of fun in-store events have you done/planned for ukuleles?

GA: When I was in my teens, my first memory of a ukulele is a standup comedian I saw on tv who did Purple Haze and classic rock songs on a soprano uke through a Marshall amp. So of course when I got in my first Ukulele with a pickup I plugged it into a full size white Marshall Stack and had a lot of fun.

AU: What is your favorite Amahi ukulele?

GA: The classic series rosewood!