West Music to buy Griggs Music in Davenport

Acquisition effective July 1

The Gazette

Jun. 15, 2022 10:30 am, Updated: Jun. 15, 2022 10:55 am

Trumpet players run through a piece of music during Silver Swing Band rehearsal at West Music in Coralville in May. (Savannah Blake/The Gazette)

Coralville-based West Music will acquire 119-year-old Griggs Music in Davenport, effective July 1, the companies said in a joint news release Wednesday.

“After an incredible 47-year career with Griggs Music, it’s time to move on to a new chapter of my life. It has been my honor and privilege to have spent my entire career with one company and to have been CEO for the last 24 years,” Steve Judge, Griggs Music CEO and co-owner, said in the release.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The Griggs brand eventually will transition to West Music, Robin Walenta, West Music’s CEO, told The Gazette.

Both Quad Cities locations will continue to operate — Griggs in Davenport, and the West Music venue in Moline. Both companies service area schools.

Griggs was started in 1903. Its Center Point Road NE store in Cedar Rapids closed about a year ago, Walenta said.

West Music was established in 1941 and is family owned. It has locations in Eastern Iowa and western Illinois.