D'Addario & Company Partner With Graj + Gustavsen

New York, New York, May 2015 – Graj + Gustavsen (G+G, www.ggny.com), a world-renown one-stop-shop brand/retail agency, known for the creation and transformation of brands, announces their strategic partnership with D’Addario & Company, a leading brand of musical accessories and products, to grow their guitar strap division.

Located in Farmingdale, NY, D’Addario has grown from being an innovative manufacturer of instrumental strings, to becoming the world’s musical accessories brand. As part of the growth strategy, D’Addario acquired the Planet Waves guitar strap business. D’Addario recognized the need to augment their capabilities in order to be a world-class competitor in this business segment, and reached out to G+G, whom they admired for years for the their mix of creativity and business savvy, to strategically guide them to achieve this goal.

“We see an opportunity to transform the guitar strap industry through the power and brand recognition of the D’Addario brand, coupled with our strategic and design capabilities,” said Steven Sicular, managing partner at Graj + Gustavsen.

“Our initial launch was a tremendous success,” said Jim D’Addario, CEO of D’Addario & Company. “We are very proud of the work we have done with G+G, and are happy to announce that we have extended our relationship.”

Graj + Gustavsen:
G+G is a full-service strategic and creative brand consultancy that offers brand and business growth solutions by delivering vision and insight in the areas of strategy, design, brand extension and consumer experience. For over 25 years, G+G has partnered with brand owners, investors and operators to maximize brand value, creating brand experiences and extensions that connect deeply with consumers. GGNY.COM

D’Addario:
D’Addario & Company, Inc. is the world's largest manufacturer of musical instrument accessories marketed under several product divisions: D'Addario Fretted and Orchestral Strings, Evans Drumheads, Promark Drumsticks, Puresound, D'Addario Woodwinds, and D'Addario/Planet Waves Accessories. A family-owned and operated business with roots dating back to the 17th century and 1,100 employees worldwide, the company manufactures 95% of its products in the U.S. employing Toyota’s Lean manufacturing principles. D’Addario musical accessories are distributed in 120 countries, serve more than 3,000 U.S. retailers, all major e-commerce sites, and are the preferred choice of professional and serious amateur musicians worldwide including Dave Matthews, Sheryl Crow, Lenny Kravitz + more.