A New Brunswick company that specializes in innovative guitar cases is receiving federal backing to take their start up to the next level.
Timber Cases is a Fredericton area company that has been in business for about two years now.
“We’re developing industry leading cases right here in New Brunswick,” says chief designer Jamie Sinclair. “When a designer sees nothing but status quo going on they get really excited, because there’s always possibilities there.”
The company's president, Peter McMath, says that kind of insight sparked the idea for this venture.
“Musicians really don’t trust cases to fly with them or to do any serious traveling, so we identified there was a real opportunity to develop a product that truly protected the guitar,” says Mcmath.
While other guitar cases are generally made from pressboard, vinyl, or plywood, Timber Cases use a high impact thermal plastic. According to McMath, it's a material that addresses the worries of anybody travelling with a guitar.
“When it’s impacted it responds back to that impact and returns to its original shape so it doesn't shatter, it’s also lighter than carbon fiber, so now it’s one of the lightest cases in the industry,” says McMath. “It’s the first case in the industry that will add humidity to the guitar when it needs it and takes it away when it doesn't.”
A different kind of guitar case, that looks different too.
“We wanted to design something very innovative looking, very contemporary, and didn’t look like anything on the market,” says Sinclair.
Timber Cases received federal government funding Monday to the tune of nearly $200,000.
The company says the money will help take them to the next level, including making protective cases for other instruments, like violins.
“We want to expand into all instrument categories,” says McMath.
The company plans to introduce their current line of guitar cases into the North American market by the summer.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Nick Moore
