Welcome to the golden era for guitarists. With so many established choices in the market, the actualisation of Maestro Guitars was always going to be an uphill battle. The journey of Maestro Guitars from its humble beginnings has been fraught with endless frustration, learning, and success. The story began in 2001 when Hozen was still a young sophomore.

Ho Zen Yong, founder of Maestro guitars and affectionately known as Hozen, possesses an entrepreneurial spirit so often lacking in Singapore. Having dabbled in various business ventures during his varsity days in SMU (Singapore Management University), plunging into the guitar business was a surprise to many. His father who runs a piano shop (Renner Piano Co.) was probably a vital influence in this seemingly bold choice; especially in Singapore. Being immersed in music since young, Hozen plays some piano and guitar but has always been fond of the six string. When he was an undergraduate, he had already envisioned a line of guitars which would eventually set new standards in terms of quality and affordability.

Distinctly adroit, guitar building is a natural progression of Hozen’s inclinations. However, he struggled to find a proper workshop with the right setup. His breakthrough came when his dad provided him a space in Renner’s warehouse. There, he worked assiduously on guitar design and building; ultimately even sacrificing his grades in school. Like any other journeyman, Hozen needed a teacher; he spent three weeks in Goa with British luthier Chris Horton and this was where his foundations were built. He later established contact with several luminaries such as Kenny Hill (Hill Guitars) and Hideo Kamimoto who gave him some invaluable advice.

After much pondering and then graduating from business school, Hozen, at the tender age of 24, felt that plunging into the deep end of guitar manufacturing was worth the risk. Maximising every penny from his previous businesses, he managed to raise just enough money to kick things off. Shortly after, sources of reliable tone woods were obtained and the first batch of classical guitars produced was sold at Renner Piano Co.. Reviews of the guitars were promising, but as a Singaporean brand, it failed to capture the hearts of those lured by having the bragging rights of owning a traditional Spanish brand. 

However, driven by the good vibe and reviews that his classicals generated, Hozen wasted no time and pepped up his small team to launch an acoustic guitar series. Like the classicals, it fared poorly as Renner catered largely to a classical music crowd. Adversity being the best form of education, Hozen kept the faith and ‘The Maestro Concept Store’ was born in September 2004. Initially, people were reluctant to enter as the shop had a boutique store façade. Also, it didn’t help that only 24 guitars were on display during that time; reinforcing the boutique store feel. Those who walked in though were surprised by the affordability of the Maestro guitars. Prices started at $199 then and till today nothing has changed. Most customers couldn’t believe that the guitars are actually largely handcrafted and made in Singapore. 

Hozen remembers the first week of business most vividly. The first two days of business was sorely disappointing and not a cent was in the cash register. On the third day, a father (with a young boy) who wanted to reward his son with a guitar walked in. The young boy took to the guitar’s sound immediately but his dad was unsure and wanted to shop around first. Hozen’s heart sank, but just minutes before closing they came back and said a resounding, ‘Yes, we’ll take it!”. Till today, this instance has left an indelible mark and it set the tone for the future of Maestro Guitars.

As Maestro Guitars started to gain acceptance in Singapore, certain problems started to surface. Hozen didn’t fully understand the ideal guitar setup for most local guitarists at that point. Many felt that the action on the guitars could be improved. The neck profile was also uncomfortable for most Asians with smaller hands.

Fortunately for Maestro, the experienced players who were looking for good tone as a priority supported our first batch of instruments. This experience made Hozen rethink his guitar specifications. Initially, all setup issues were addressed individually at the shop but as sales volume increased, a trend was found and a suitable set of player specifications was decided upon. By 2005, a bigger and better QC department equipped with modern specialised guitar tools from Stewmac was setup at the workshop.

A hefty investment indeed and results only started to visibly show in 2006 as Maestro guitars were getting great feedback from churches and professional musicians. In 2007, Tan Kai-Chin, aka KC, a popular guitar tech amongst local musicians joined the Maestro team. He further refined the QC process and from there Maestro Guitars took another step forward.

Maestro Guitars has grown tremendously over the years with a larger production. To date, Maestro Guitars has three retail outlets in Singapore, one in Bangkok (Thailand), a rep office in Hong Kong and several distributors and dealers in the European market, thus making their dream of "Everyone's Guitar" come true.