Guitar Emporium going virtual

One of the constants on Ballard Avenue over the last 21 years has been Guitar Emporium (5349 Ballard Ave. NW.) The shop has sat on the corner of Ballard Ave and 22nd Ave NW for two decades.

This Friday, the brick and mortar shop is closing. We spoke with the owner who tells us that he’s shifting his focus to an online-only retail business and moving up to Orcas Island. He says that this is a good move and he’s really looking forward to it. He’s not, however, looking forward to the next couple of months as he gets everything organized for his online shop. Until Friday a lot of his merchandise is marked down, after that it will take some time before GuitarEmporium.com is up and running. (Thanks Michelle for the tip!)

Geeky Swedes

The founders of My Ballard

15 thoughts to “Guitar Emporium going virtual”

  1. I must have tried to visit this store a dozen times or more, but it’s always closed. Worse, he has a front-row seat to the Sunday market and is always locked up then. So, yay for him I guess.

  2. Rob, don’t go! No00000000… :(

    A cool and unique store that *will* be missed. What now, another bar or a boutique?

    Good luck to Rob Eagle, a really great person who sold top quality stringed instruments.

  3. I think the store is closed during the Sunday Market so that kids and Urban Explorers (people in backpacks) don’t knock $3000 guitars off the wall. It’s was a great shop though, sad to see it go.

  4. To be replaced by yet another monument to the yuppie takeover of Ballard. Another oyster shop, another English pub where drunken revelers can drink their way to the new economy where all work has been virtualized to China.

  5. Sad they’re going – but every time I’ve tried to go there, they’ve been closed. I wish they would have kept extended weekend hours.

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