'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.
Hundreds of P.E.I. parents can't find child-care spaces, especially for infants. The provincial government says expanding those spots remains a top priority — and it recognizes the concern.
An Alberta judge says a referendum proposal on Alberta separating from Canada goes against Charter and and Treaty rights, in a decision given less than 24 hours after the provincial government introduced legislation that would have ended the court proceeding.
The architect of Alberta's politician recall legislation says it was never meant to be used as a political weapon, but as an "ultimate tool of accountability" if a politician engages in illegal or unethical behaviour.
The Government of Saskatchewan has introduced its long-promised involuntary treatment legislation on the final day of the fall sitting.
The Law Society of Ontario has suspended the licence of Deepak Paradkar, one of seven Canadians arrested in connection with alleged drug lord Ryan Wedding’s cocaine smuggling ring.
London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) is getting rid of unlimited mental health benefits for staff, blaming ballooning costs and former administrators for implementing it without proper due diligence or oversight.
Netflix has agreed to buy Warner Bros. Discovery's TV and film studios and streaming division for $72 billion US, a deal that would hand control of one of Hollywood's most prized and oldest assets to the streaming pioneer that has upended the media industry.
CBC Calgary kicks off its annual Make the Season Kind campaign this morning at Fratello Coffee Roasters.
CBC Newfoundland and Labrador is kicking off its annual holiday campaign, helping to raise money to support local food banks.
If all goes according to plan, at 6 a.m. AT on Saturday people working at the IWK Health Centre will become the test case for a generational change to Nova Scotia’s health-care system.
One month after Prime Minister Mark Carney announced what he called "generational" military spending, New Brunswick’s defence ecosystem is on high alert.
Miranda Mirlycourtois, 34, looks directly at the camera and makes a confession.
Saskatoon city hall says police spending is projected to be $2.6 million over budget this year. That pushes the city into a $1.2-million deficit position, according to a report that will be considered by city council next week.