From left: Tracey Higgins, Brian Higgins, Bill Higgins, Jamie Higgins and Nancy Higgins.
Bill’s Music in Catonsville, Maryland, is celebrating its 60th year anniversary this year. Since the grand opening by founder William “Bill” and Nancy Higgins in 1965, the store has become a destination for musicians and the biggest family-owned music store in Maryland, drawing customers from across the state and the East Coast.
“We built up a nice reputation, not just in our local area, but all Baltimore and even really up and down the East Coast,” said Brian Higgins, manager. “We have a ton of inventory. We’re one of the absolute largest music stores that you’ll ever walk into, which is 36,000 square feet, so when you walk in, it’s almost overpowering.”
Over the years, the store has expanded seven times along Frederick Road and now offers new, used, and vintage instruments, rentals, repairs, lessons and band rehearsal spaces. More than 500 students visit the store weekly, and touring bands often stop by.
Six decades later, the store has remained in the Higgins family for over three generations.
“We’re a family store, so it was started by my dad and my mom, and I’ve got two sisters and a brother-in-law working with me,” Brian said. “The fact that we achieved a 60 year milestone in the place we grew up, in our little community of Catonsville here, we did it as a family. It’s only been one owner right from the beginning, and it stayed right within the family. My mom is so proud that we’ve made it to 60 years.”
The Higgins family has experienced four generations of customers walking through its doors.
“There’s a real family atmosphere when you come into our store,” Brian said. “When you’ve done it for 60 years, fourth generation customers come in, so people have literally grown up shopping in the store and that’s something to be proud of. It’s really large, but it still has that small family atmosphere, and we’re proud of that.”
To celebrate the milestone, Bill’s Music hosted a 60th anniversary dance at the Knights of Columbus on Oct. 11, with more than 250 attendees, including former employees and long-time customers.
“We had a lot of older employees and customers that have been here over the years,” Brian said. “We had one of the most famous bands in Baltimore that we used to book back in the 70s that came and played the dance floor.” MI
