Editor’s Note: “Front And Center” is brought to you by the Women’s International Music Network (The WiMN). The interviews showcase accomplished women who work in the music and audio industries, spotlighting successful female performers, manufacturers, retailers, educators, managers, publicists and others. Visit thewimn.com to view the weekly interviews and to learn more about how to be featured.
Deering Banjo Company calls itself The Great American Banjo Company, and rightfully so.
Founded by visionary couple Greg and Janet Deering in 1975 and based in Spring Valley CA, just 10 miles east of downtown San Diego, Deering Banjo Company has become the leading banjo manufacturer in the United States.
The family-run business offers a full range of American-made banjos, including the Deering, Vega, Tenbrooks and Goodtime banjos, all hand-built by the Deerings and their team of 48 dedicated banjo specialists, who hold a combined 231 years’ banjo-building expertise.
The company also boasts an impressive artist roster, which features names like Mumford & Sons, Ashley Campbell, Béla Fleck, “Mean” Mary James and many others.
Janet Deering, who now holds the position of CEO at Deering Banjo Company, earned her way to the top through a lot of arduous work. She’s done everything from bookkeeping to sanding, but she’s always managed to find time to play banjo along the way.
When asked what advice she would give to women who aspire to succeed within the music products industry, Deering said, “Don’t give up when you are discouraged. Just keep on going! Perfect your craft to the highest level of professionalism and you will succeed if you are persistent. Success takes time…it won’t happen overnight.”
This formidable CEO also discussed how she’s seen the banjo industry evolve since her company’s inception more than 40 years ago, what she wishes everybody knew about the banjo and some exciting news about upcoming leadership for Deering Banjo Company. Here’s a hint: It’ll stay within the family.
Women’s International Music Network: Are you a musician? If so, what do you play, and how long have you played?
Janet Deering: Yes. I have played banjo and guitar for about 30 years.
The WiMN: Since founding Deering Banjos in 1975 with your husband, Greg, what different roles have you held within the company?
Deering: I began as a craftswoman, sanding the banjo parts, staining them and doing the in-between coat sanding and buffing of the final finished parts for the first 15 years. All the while, I was taking the orders and doing the bookkeeping, promotion and financial management.
In 1990, I became focused on administration and I delegated my production jobs. I developed our sales and marketing programs, and I hired and trained a sales and marketing team. I organized our inventory cage and helped to implement lean manufacturing into our company in the last 10 years. I have been the CEO for the past 15 years.
The WiMN: What’s one thing you wish everyone knew about banjos?
Deering: How much fun they are to play and how quickly one can learn to play one. They are tuned in a G chord, and, so, one can do a barre chord on every fret and play a song without any complex fingering in the beginning. Songs can be learned in just a few minutes with our two-finger banjo method.
The WiMN: What advice do you have for women who are pursuing a career in the music products industry?
Deering: Don’t give up when you are discouraged. Just keep on going! Perfect your craft to the highest level of professionalism and you will succeed if you are persistent. Success takes time…it won’t happen overnight.
The WiMN: What type of outreach does Deering Banjos do to female musicians?
Deering: We work with many female artists the world over, and we include them in our family of Deering artists equally with male musicians. Although banjo might have originally been a male-dominated instrument, this is very much not the case now. You can find women such as Alison Brown and Rhiannon Giddens among the most respected banjo players in the world.
In every aspect of our company and in our artist relations, women are respected. In addition to this, we make lighter-weight banjos so they are more comfortable for some women to handle, and our Parlor banjos suit those who need a shorter distance to reach on the neck.
The WiMN: How do you think banjo ranks in popularity now as compared to four decades ago?
Deering: Banjo has grown in popularity at a very fast pace since the introduction of the Internet because, now, information to learn about banjos is freely available all over the world. You can see on YouTube how they are played. Banjo popularity has skyrocketed in the last 40 years.
This has been spurred on by artists, such as the Dixie Chicks, Steve Martin, Mumford & Sons and Taylor Swift, who have brought the banjo to new audiences. And now, to continue the movement, there are artists such as Elle King who can be seen regularly rocking a banjo!
The WiMN: Who are some amazing female banjo players people should know about?
Deering: Alison Brown, Beverly Dillard, “Mean” Mary James, Linda Williams, Rhiannon Giddens, Taylor Swift, Ashley Campbell, Elle King, Kasey Musgraves, Shook Twins, Randy Abby, Paula Fernandez, Willow Osborne and Abigail Washburn.
The WiMN: Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Deering: Set high goals and high standards for yourself. Continue to be creative in promotion and outreach, and just don’t give up. There is always a way to solve every problem in life if you seek the solution and continue to go forward to find it.
Our daughter, Jamie Deering, who is working as our Vice President of Public Service & Outreach, will provide leadership for Deering Banjos into the future.
Founded in 2012, the Women’s International Music Network unites women who work within all facets of the music and audio industries. For additional information, visit thewimn.com.