Korg & Marshall Break Up

Starting next month, Korg USA will no longer distribute Marshall amps. This doesn’t mean anything for production of any product, but it does directly effect authorized Marshall dealers and repair centers, marketing for Marshall and you, if you have to deal with the company for support. The marketing side could also impact the cost of Marshall amps, but markets speculators hesitate to guess which way things might go. Korg and Marshall have been together for 46 years, making this a somewhat startling turn. FYI, Korg is still the distributor for VOX and Lâg guitars.

So now what? Well, it appears that Marshall is going to U.S. Music, a company that also handles distribution for Eden, Randall and Washburn. Erikson, another division of U.S. Music’s parent company, has been distributing Marshall in Canada for over a decade, so consumers speculate that the transition won’t be incredibly drastic in terms of practices.

But Marshall’s break with Korg also coincided with a September 15 press release announcing the move to create Marshall USA – that’s a split from former d.b.a. Marshall Amplification. According to Jon Ellery, Marshall UK Co-managing Director, this in all in an effort to “create a US presence with experienced individuals such as Marc Lee [Shannon, Marshall USA’s new VP of Sales] and Ryan [Rhodes, Marshall USA’s new Brand Director]. It certainly is the right time for Marshall to launch this strategic effort in the US. This initiative will allow us to truly leverage the iconic position of our brand, and to provide the absolute best in customer service, marketing and promotion.”

Though this all seems like a would-be big deal, there’s no direct mention of it at all on marshall.com, or on korgusa.com or under its Marshall section, particularly. Considering that this encompasses a huge shift in marketing techniques, we can understand not waving it in the end consumer’s face. But experienced shop owners share a consensus that should be passed on as a warning to all you mom & pop’s out there – remember to get your outstanding claims in before the October 1 transition date, less than a week away.

Don't forget to share