WHAT GIBSON DID NEXT
It’s been just over a year since Gibson made a triumphant return to the NAMM Show, with the new ownership making sweeping changes to their range that finally gave fans what they’d wanted for years – production guitars that were informed by the iconic instruments that made the brand a household name. The 12 months since has not always been smooth sailing, but as Gibson enters a new decade, the company is bristling with intent, ambition and a determination to embed Gibson firmly at the heart of the guitar world again.
Cesar Gueikian is at the forefront of all of this. Gibson’s softly-spoken CMO has been perhaps the most pivotal figure in the rapid and radical overhaul of the brand’s product line since it emerged from bankruptcy in late 2018, and as a lifetime guitar obsessive and Gibson fan, one of the most visible faces of the rejuvenated brand.
As the company prepared to return to NAMM in 2020 with a veritable cornucopia of exciting new launches, we caught up with Cesar to look back on the first year of ‘new’ Gibson, what he’s learned, what he regrets and why he’s excited about the future…
It’s been almost exactly a year since Gibson returned to NAMM – the response at the time was universally positive from fans and media alike, but how were you feeling in the run up to that 2019 show?
“To be honest it was a monstrous combination of being very nervous, a huge sense of anticipation about how it was going to be received, and a lot of excitement all blended in! We had a very short time frame from when we were finally able
