Brook Mays Music Company, known generally as Brook Mays, is a

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...

-based

retailer Retail is the sale of goods and Service (economics), services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturing, manufacturers, dire ...

of musical instruments, sheet music, and supplies for individuals, bands and orchestras.

History

Brook Mays was founded by its namesake

investor An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital most of the time the investor purchases some species of property. Type ...

, Brook Mays, who saw the opportunity to open a

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

dealership in Dallas, and opened the chain's original store in August 1901. At the time, it dealt exclusively in pianos, and became the largest such dealership in its region. Brook Mays was the only major music company in the area to survive the Great Depression. In the 1940s, the company expanded its wares to include organs, sheet music, and

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania *Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

instruments. Extensive remodeling following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

until the early 1950s led to expansion in the downtown Dallas store, which fostered the development of its band instrument division. It became the largest supplier of band instruments to school groups in the southern United States. Brook Mays often had partnerships with school districts, and offered them bulk discounts. The company grew rapidly with renewed interest in electrical instruments, and had over 50 stores, plus a mail-order and

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division to serve international customers. Each store had access to extensive instrument repair facilities, as well as the largest instrument rental service in the southwest United States. Brook Mays' slogan is "Brook Mays means music". In 2003 First Act Inc., a competitor that sells its instruments at mass market retailers sued Brook Mays and was awarded $16.7 million. According to First Act, Brook Mays discouraged patrons from buying First Act's very inexpensive instruments. This claim was based on a flyer that Brook Mays sent out to band directors and consumers. In 2006, a judge awarded First Act the full amount of their claim. In July 2006, Brook Mays Music Group filed for

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

bankruptcy, citing poor back-to-school and holiday sales. In August 2006, after 105 years of business, the liquidation of Brook Mays was ordered. Private investment company Oak Point Partners acquired the remnant assets, consisting of any known and unknown assets that weren't previously administered, from the Brook Mays Music Company Bankruptcy Estate on December 1, 2010.Order Approving the Sale of Certain Assets of the Debtor's Estate to Oak Point Partners, Inc.
''Bankrupt Company News'', December 1, 2012 Effective December 1, 2006, a new entity began operating at least one of the old Brook Mays music stores, using the name Brook Mays. The entity now operates five retail stores (two in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex plus the company office and showroom, and three in the

Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land, is the fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the United States, encompassing nine counties along the Gulf Co ...

area). The store continues to rent band instruments to schools.

Notes

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External links

Official company website
Retail companies of the United States Companies based in Dallas Privately held companies based in Texas Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2006 Musical instrument retailers of the United States