Guitar Center Launches Nationwide Food Drive

Guitar Center Launches Nationwide Food Drive

World's Largest Music Retail Chain to Partner With Community Food Banks Across the Country To Help Fight Hunger

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., Oct. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Guitar Center today announced a nationwide, two-week food drive that will begin at all of its retail locations on November 1st. Each Guitar Center store will donate all food collected during the drive to a local food bank in hopes of easing the national hunger issue, while garnering grassroots community support to build upon their efforts.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091026/NY98289 )

All of Guitar Center's 214 retail locations will participate in the food drive to benefit 124 local food banks. As a special thanks, anyone who donates a non-perishable item will receive a coupon for 10% off their next Guitar Center purchase. A full list of participating food banks and Guitar Center locations is available at www.guitarcenter.com

"We're launching this campaign on a national level -- using the power and reach of all of our locations -- to make a measurable difference on a local level," said Gene Joly, Executive Vice President of Guitar Center Stores. "It is incredibly important for us to truly make an impact, especially around the holidays, and we're confident that we can accomplish that with the support and participation of people eager to affect real change in their community."

Guitar Center is also supporting the effort with a multi-tiered marketing campaign -- including presence in the Guitar Center buyer's guide with a circulation over 1 million, targeted in-store promotion with signage and in-store audio, a full online promotional push, as well as a public relations initiative which is being launched to drive additional awareness and participation.

About Guitar Center

Guitar Center is the world's largest retailer of guitars, amplifiers, percussion instruments, keyboards and pro-audio and recording equipment. Our retail store subsidiary presently operates 214 Guitar Center stores across the U.S. We are also the largest direct response retailer of musical instruments in the United States through our wholly owned subsidiary, Musician's Friend, Inc., and its catalog and Web site, www.musiciansfriend.com. In addition, our Music & Arts division operates more than 100 stores specializing in band instruments for sale and rental, serving teachers, band directors, college professors and students. More information on Guitar Center can be found by visiting the Company's Web site at www.guitarcenter.com.

The Guitar Center logo is a registered trademark of Guitar Center, Inc. Other brand or product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.

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Source: Guitar Center

CONTACT: Ed James of Cornerstone, +1-212-652-9295,
ed@cornerstonepromotion.com

Web Site: http://www.guitarcenter.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment