Taylor Guitars: Kurt Listug and Bob Taylor. From $3,700 Shop to Global Icon

Taylor Guitars' co-founders, Bob Taylor and Kurt Listug, recount building their acoustic guitar brand from a small repair shop. Bob's innovative, playable guitar necks, diverging from the era's "baseball bat" necks, attracted electric guitar players. Facing financial struggles, they secured a loan to buy the shop, initially named Westland Music Company, later Taylor Guitars, recognizing Bob's talent and the name's marketability. A pivotal moment came when they shifted from batch production to crafting one guitar at a time, improving efficiency and cash flow. Despite disco-era challenges, Taylor Guitars survived by incorporating pickups, gaining pop music traction. Their success led to a partnership with Prince, who played a custom purple Taylor guitar in the "Raspberry Beret" video, and later, a relationship with Taylor Swift, who played Taylor guitars early in her career.