When the doors to the Podium in Dinkytown opened in 1959, no one paid that much attention. It wasn't until Bob Dylan-then merely Robert Zimmerman-walked in looking for Martin guitar strings three years later that the "times began a changing" for the store.
The owner didn't sell strings, so he became an authorized Martin dealer and then began selling high-end acoustic instruments. Dylan got his strings and went on to fame-as did the Podium, which is now world-renowned for its selection of premium guitars and sheet music.
About six years ago, Jeff Molde, formerly an investment banker and co-founder of a prominent graphics design firm, purchased the Podium and gave it a face-lift.
The drab and muted walls were painted deep green, bringing out the red warmth of the 200 some guitars decking the walls. Molde purchased the antique showcases, which display some of the Podium's finer guitars, from the father a Star Tribune music critic whom he befriended. "[He] took pity on us and gave us them for a fraction of what they are worth," Molde said.
Even the door entrance has a story. Originally part of the entryway to a commuter bar in a Philadelphia train station, it made its journey over to a Dassel, Minn., railroad museum where Molde finally bought it. "Everything else we made to match," Molde said, referring to the Mahogany shelves, bookcases and counters.
Before reopening the Podium, his staff surveyed the store inventory. "We got rid of any lines we didn't love," Molde said.
"It kind of has the old general store feeling," Mold said. "People hang out, jam with each other, and talk about guitars."
Molde, who is self-taught and can't read sheet music," has played guitars most of his life. "I can't remember not playing," he said, adding jokingly that he only plays four songs. "I try to help people find voice for what they want to do artistically," Molde said.
No matter the hour, the store is seldom quiet. The strumming of a bluegrass tune. The buzzing of humidifiers running at constant temperatures. The tinkering of neck joints and fingerboards in the repair shop. Beyond the noise, the phone and computer take in daily orders, catering from college students to professional musicians to people from all around the world. Molde's never sure who will be on the end of the line. Sting even called once.
Stroll into the store and your ears might be greeted by the lingering sounds from a killer guitar player's wail session to the swelling full-bodied tones of someone testing a Martin D-28 GE guitar. Everything from straps, tuners, and fret board oil fill the counters and shelves. Guitar cases, old and new, pile around the repair desk in the basement.
Ask Molde what his favorite guitar is and he won't be able to answer you. "It's like asking what flavor of wonderful you want," Molde said. He can't decide-and neither can the customers who keep coming back.
www.thepodium.com
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