HODGDON, Maine — What started out 30 years ago as a simple plan to sell a few guitars in his spare time away from teaching and playing gigs has become so much more for Hodgdon businessman Tim Humphrey.
This year, Humphrey and his wife Dorene are celebrating their 30th anniversary of operating Northern Musical Supply in southern Aroostook County. It was Tim who came up with the notion of opening a music store on Franklin Street (now Chandler Street) in Houlton back in 1984, starting out with a focus solely on guitars. The couple moved to their current location at 82 Calais Road in Hodgdon in 1998.
Dorene’s father ran a used car business — Ellis Auto Sales — for 30 years from the same location and there are several photos hanging on the walls inside as a tribute to that business.
“Keeping small has been the key to success,” Humphrey said. “The weird thing about this business is, the more things I get; the more places I find to display things. I have five times the inventory than when I first moved out here, and yet it all still fits.”
Today, Northern Musical Supply offers much more than just guitars — although those are still bountiful. In addition to guitars, Humphrey sells amplifiers, sound systems, banjos, microphones, harmonicas, drum heads and sticks, tuning equipment, strings, and various other musical accessories. A lot of his additional inventory came from a music store in Calais that closed shop. Guitar strings are the most popular item available in his store.
Pianos, keyboards and drum kits can also be had through special order. He specializes in Ibanez and Walden guitars, but also has Samick, Michael Kelly and B.C. Rich guitars. Humphrey believes he is the only dealer north of Portland to sell Gold Tone banjos and mandolins.
The music business has slowed down somewhat in recent years, but Humphrey has not slowed with it.
“Traffic has been really slow at the store,” Humphrey said. “ Obviously the economy is down. People aren’t buying luxury items like electric guitars and amps. Plus Internet sales and big box stores have really exploded.”
To help with the slow economic times, Humphrey has done more DJ’ing as “Tim the Tuneman,” with his purple, flower power Volkswagen bus. He can be found at many area town celebrations spinning tunes and getting youngsters involved in a variety of games.
Recently, he paired with Larry Scott of Hill-Top Lanes bowling alley to offer a “Family Fun Night,” combining bowling with music and games. The venture was so successful that an additional event has been slated for Feb. 1.
Humphrey also does repair work on guitars and dabbles a bit with fixing amplifiers. Re-stringing guitars is what keeps him the busiest.
“We sell a lot of strings,” he said. “If you are a serious player, you need a new set of strings every gig or two. If you are only playing for your own enjoyment at home, you need to change the strings every month or so.”
While Humphrey does not offer musical lessons, he can point people in the direction of those who offer such services. He sells instructional CDs, DVDs and books.
Music has been a huge part of Humphrey’s life. He is a self-taught musician who played in local bands during his high school and college days, and continues to do so to this day. He can play every instrument found in his store.
“It started out as just a little shop with some strings and a couple of guitars, because that is what I liked,” he said. “Now it has grown to where we are at today.”
Upon graduation from Ricker College in 1969, he taught physical education in Sherman as that was the only job opening he could find. Humphrey filled that post for about a half a year when an opening came up to teach English at the middle school. He stayed at the post until 1979 when he took a job at Hodgdon High School teaching English until 1989. He then taught at the middle school level from 1989 to his retirement in 2004.
Northern Musical Supply is open by appointment. For more information, call Humphrey at 538-5164 or visit his Facebook page.
