'It's the right time': Sawchyn Guitars owners bid emotional goodbye as they prepare to close Regina store
CBC
The owners of the instrument repair and retail store Sawchyn Guitars in Regina's Warehouse District are closing their doors for good this spring.
They want everyone to know that they're OK. In fact, luthier Peter Sawchyn and Kendra Walker are doing great.
"It's not like the bank is repossessing my house or we have to leave or we're both sick and dying or something … which has been what people have been asking!" said Walker.
Sawchyn and Walker, who have been married for 47 years, are healthy and said the business has been very successful.
"I keep comparing it to Seinfeld … everybody was in love with that show and they left when everybody was feeling that it was at a high … I think that's what we're trying to do. As hard as this is, I know it's the right move for us at this point in our lives," Walker said.
"We wanted to leave on our terms. It's the right time. I know I'm emotional about it, but I'm dealing with it," Sawchyn added.
WATCH| Sawchyn Guitars will permanently close its doors:
Sawchyn had already been an instrument repairman and a guitar-maker in Regina for decades before he and Walker opened the store on Dewdney Avenue in 2012.
"We were a little later in life … when we opened it. And our motivation was really to have a space to work out of where there are lots of high quality instruments. And we wanted to incorporate a community feel," Sawchyn said.
The store hosted house concerts, and the owners said they tried to create a homey feel.
Sawchyn and Walker said they have built many relationships with local bands and musicians over the years. In fact, Regina folk-bluegrass group The Dead South were just starting out when Sawchyn Guitars first opened.
"We were brand new as well. We got to know them. They're one of our favourite customers. We have lots of favourite customers though," Sawchyn said.
"That's going to be the hardest thing to actually leave behind us is all the day-to-day kind of relationships."
Scott Pringle, who plays mandolin and guitar and sings in The Dead South, said Sawchyn Guitars has always been a very personable place. He wished Sawchyn and Walker good luck with their next steps.