This week marks the beginning of One Lucky Guitar’s 25th year of communicating brand soul. We’ll be celebrating throughout 2025, and invite you to be a part of it all.
First, a few words from our founder…
November 24, 2000 was like most other late-November days in Fort Wayne, Indiana—a high in the low-40s, sinking into the teens later in the evening, no precipitation.
It was the day after Thanksgiving, at a time in the world when people camped out overnight waiting for big-box retailers to open their doors to holiday deals.
Bob Dylan had recently released his stunning new single, “Things Have Changed.”
The campaigns of George W. Bush and Al Gore were two weeks into a monthlong legal battle over who had won the presidential election.
LeBron James was a sophomore in high school, and Beyoncé, at 19, was singing in an R&B band named Destiny’s Child.
Me? I’d just left my promising job at a flourishing marketing firm and was sitting at a small desk in my kitchen, listening to that Dylan song, and building the web portfolio for my new job as a freelance art director and copywriter.
The website’s address was oneluckyguitar.com.
Today, One Lucky Guitar, Inc. embarks upon its 25th year in business.
We are ten OLG’ers strong. We’re doing some of the best work of our careers, for some of the best clients we’ve ever served.
We are blessed—lucky—to work with people we trust, for people we respect, and to do work we believe in.
There have been 32 OLG’ers over the last couple-dozen years, and working alongside them, being inspired by them, providing them with challenging and meaningful work—and having an incredible amount of fun and even friendship along the way—has been one of the great joys and privileges of my life.
Here’s to Josh, Paige, Nate, Amy, Tommy, Suzanne, Jake, Heather, Drew, Nicole W., Michelle, Bridget, Taylor, Jonathan, Tammy, Leslee, Olivia, Emma, Shane, Beth, Matt T., Kara, Jasmine, Annie, Chelsea, Zach, Caity, Zoe, Nicole F., Erin and Angie H.
It hasn’t been easy. In fact, for a long time I deduced that “easy” was a four-letter word (it is!), and tried to cut it from my vocabulary.
We eventually found and proudly displayed a banner made by the good folks at Oxford Pennant, which revealed the secret, in eight-inch-tall red-and-blue felt letters. The banner proudly and simply states the fact: NO LUCK. ALL WORK.
We’re only able to enter this milestone season thanks to the years and years of commitment, collaboration and courage from our clients and partners.
The work that they’ve entrusted us with has, without hyperbole, been life-changing—for us, often for them, and almost always for those they serve. We have, through their hands, been able to make Northeast Indiana (and, sometimes, far beyond) a little better place than it was before we all started working together.
What a gift, for me and the good people I get to serve with.
Out in nature, it’s often said to leave nothing, take nothing. Here in the world of branding, though, I’m proud to say that we’ve left it all on the canvas, and we’re taking all of the memories home with us.
With everlasting gratitude.
MK
