The Music Shoppe

Jonathon Breen’s grandparents opened The Music Shoppe in 1961 in Bloomington, Illinois. Back then the name was spelled without the second P and the E, which were added later by his Uncle Randy when he expanded the business by opening other locations. Jonathon’s interesting intro into the business came when he was 15 years old and needed money to take his girlfriend to the school dance. He was given the task to wipe down the drum kits and music stands in the store. His uncle was impressed by his attention to detail and invited Jonathon to join the team.

Katie Helgeson remembers the day in the fourth grade when a local music store brought instruments to her school to try out. She asked the instructor which was the hardest to learn and so started her journey in music with the French Horn. After college, she gravitated to the same music store she hung out at as a kid and began cleaning instruments and helping out whenever she could. Today she is the Operations Manager for the Music Shoppe in Normal, Illinois. Katie participated in the Women of NAMM (WoN) leadership summit in October 2022.

Beth Smith was in her school’s band room when she overheard her director mention getting paid for a job involving music. She inquired and learned there was an opening at the local music store where her band director worked part-time. The year was 1993 and the store was The Music Shoppe in Normal, Illinois. After earning her master's degree and Ph.D. in Florida and being away from the industry for a while, Beth moved back to Normal and found there was a job at the store waiting for her. She has since become the school services specialist.

Randy Wood is the president of The Music Shoppe in Normal, Illinois. The store specializes in band instrument repairs and strong customer service.  The store goes back to the days when a former college band director, John Noonan opened a small retail and repair store.  In 1961, Randy's father, Tom, purchased the store and changed the name to The Music Shoppe.