Billy Dominick

For the first week or two of December I was working with the setup team to get Christmas ukes out. It always just takes a bit of time in their shoes to have sympathy for the effort. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t feel bad for them. It’s a very satisfying work. The pleasure of playing the instrument from when you got it to when you are done is significant and there’s a gratification to that. What sucks is running into issues, having to reject instruments, that whole process of not being able to make a wrong right. One thing I can say is that we do go to bat for you. That not only takes effort, but also expertise, and so, it’s been hard to fill the position we’ve had available for another full time setup person. Until recently….

We were able to exceed our promises this year in regards to Christmas orders because Joel, Eli, and Chris worked overtime, and myself and even custom builder Ryan Condon from Ko’olau jumped in and helped us, but also because we got this awesome new setup tech a few months back. Billy Dominick has been a luthier for 30 years! He worked with PRS for many years, Taylor Guitars, and most recently was running the repair department at Blue Guitar for about 10 years before moving to Hawaii.

Needless to say, I was excited to get him on the team and he’s been a perfect addition. His professional abilities have both helped with work load, and also added to our knowledge base in this specialized skill. Another expert in the building to consult and learn from, and to boot he’s really friendly and easy to get along with.

This one’s for you Billy. Great you have you with the HMS Ohana.