Rand and Cindy Cook own and manage The Candyman Strings & Things in Santa Fe, NM. Rand’s first encounter with The Candyman was when he was three years old where he was given a jaw harp, his first musical instrument. Over a twenty year period, Rand rose from Strings & Things Manager to Store Manager to General Manager, assuming ownership in the spring of 2009. “There’s no greater joy than seeing a kid get his first guitar. That’s what dreams are made of and that’s what’s kept me happy all these years,” says Rand. “The relational aspect of this business is the most important thing.” Cindy worked towards a bachelor’s degree in marketing and communications and now owns The Candyman with her husband.

Frank Alkyer is the publisher of DownBeat, Music Inc. and UpBeat Daily magazines–all produced by Maher Publications, a family-owned company based in Elmhurst, Ill. He joined the company as editorial director in 1989 and he was named associate publisher in 1992 and publisher in 2003.

Jill Andrews is the Lead Business Development Specialist in the Santa Ana District Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration and manages a team of Business Development Specialists.   Before joining the Small Business Administration she was the regional manager of the Peace Corps, serving the region that encompassed southern California and Arizona. Andrews was responsible for recruitment activities and conducted more than 5,100 outreach events, recruited more than 5,200 volunteers and built alliances with more than 300 two-year and four-year college and universities in the region in five years to attract volunteers for Peace Corps service. Jill Andrews is a former state director of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB). In this capacity, Ms.

John is a hobbyist drummer, fanatical music listener, and student of retail. He has been the Director Of Business Development for AIMM for the last ten years, and has worked in music and consumer electronics since 1984.
 

Jeff Anop currently serves as a co-founder of MusicGearFinder.com, the premier consumer solution for connecting musicians, music dealers, and the products they sell. Jeff has over 10 years experience as a thought leader in the online classifieds space. Before founding www.MusicGearFinder.com, Jeff worked at Cox Enterprises as a leader in online product and search engine optimization (SEO). Jeff spent multiple years leading Cox Newspapers push into the classified online space and leading AutoTrader.com’s SEO and Innovation efforts.

John Arnold is the author of three marketing books in the best-selling “For Dummies” series: Web Marketing All-in-One Desk Reference for Dummies, Mobile Marketing for Dummies, and Email Marketing for Dummies.

Donovan is the Vice President at Springfield Music located in Springfield, MO.  Over the last ten years he has developed Springfield Music into a full-line music store that is ranked in the top 200 music stores in the US.  He is also a board member of the imso (independent Music Store Owners).  In addition to the music business, he is also a husband, father of two, and a bass guitar and trumpet player.

Located in Vancouver Washington, Beacock Music is the largest independent music store in the Pacific Northwest.  In addition to the entire Portland –Vancouver metro area, Beacock Music services areas as far north as Tacoma Washington and south to Eugene Oregon, out to the coast and eastern Oregon.  Built in 2004, our new retail store is constantly expanding its services and product lines as we adapt to meet our customers’ changing needs.

Angelo Biasi has worked in the Music Industry for over 20 years in MI Retail, Advertising/Marketing for Manufacturers, and in integrated media (online/offline) publishing and marketing where he currently serves as Co-Founder/VP for In Tune Partners.

Colleen Billings has more than fifteen years experience in corporate training and human resources. Her innovative approach to organizational development and talent management blends equal parts mentoring managers and executives with regular one-on-one interaction with all employees.