Our Origin
Inspired by J. Masic’s guitar playing, Marty Renk asked himself, “Could I teach myself to play like J. some day?” After 15 years of playing, the answer is “no” but he still plays most days inspired by J. and other guitar gods. His guitar playing may not be that good but his guitar stands sure are. His inspired guitar stands are beautiful, super sturdy, and some might say works of art.
Marty and his small crew of craftsmen and craftswomen, design and build everything in small shop out of Minnesota.
The company name, Gus Mfg. Co, is ode to Marty’s father, “Gus” Renk who operated a foundry for 50 years. He worked everyday for most of those 50 years. “Gus” showed his seven children that being successful is about discipline, doing the customer right, and caring for employees and the community.
Our purpose
- Take common everyday items and design them into functional art. And build them so they last lifetimes.
- Provide jobs that are fun, creative, and well compensated.
- To make or source everything in the U.S.A. with a focus on small businesses. Manufacturer as much as possible in-house. We design everything.
- Be environmentally conscious in everything we do.
Our giving
Annually, we give 10% of profits to LOCAL community initiatives related to music.