Stonebridge guitars have a great story.

They’re made in the Czech Republic by a guitar maker who’s been practising his craft for 30 years and the company’s name refers to the Charles Bridge, a famous landmark in Prague that dates from the 1300s.

These are not necessarily a type of instrument you’d expect to find in rural Cape Breton — but think again. At Lakewind Sound Studios Ltd. in Point Aconi, the guitars are available for musicians to use.

Lakewind’s Fred Lavery and Michael Shepherd, along with co-owner Gordie Sampson, who is now based in Nashville, are happy they can make these instruments available to Nova Scotians.

"We were approached by the Canadian rep for Stonebridge guitars when the East Coast Music Awards were in Sydney a few years back," Lavery said. "He wanted to have the guitars seen by as many professional musicians as possible and so offered to place a number of instruments with us."

Stonebridge has placed instruments in about 20 music stores in North America.

"Introducing Stonebridge guitars to the Nashville scene has resulted in significant brand exposure through artists picking up the guitars and not wanting to put them down," Lavery said. "A quality instrument can inspire you, that is all-important to an artist and translates directly into performance and creativity."

This isn’t the first time the studio has partnered with other businesses and he and Shepherd think this particular partnership has been a good fit for both companies, Lavery said.Adding new capabilities to their lineup is significant, both to appeal to potential clients and to keep their existing clients satisfied, he said. About half of their clients have worked with them before. Given the nature of the recording business, years can pass between visits, which makes the details of the studio experience that much more important when the time comes.

The studio is more than a space for recording songs.

"We have tried to make the whole process of recording as trouble-free as possible for our clients and to that effect have business relationships with the best photographers, graphic designers, web site hosting and manufacturing companies," Lavery said.

There’s a role for other kinds of guidance, as well, he said.

"We also offer help and advice in creating networks for like-minded artists who may not have met before, setting up song writing sessions (and) helping people establish an online presence so they can make their music available to new markets."

Lavery and Shepherd can also discuss the pros and cons of using social networking sites — iTunes, CD Baby and other ways of getting music to the final purchasers — with their clients, Lavery said. Further, the studio is able to offer input on "publishing music, copyright protection, mechanical licensing and other possible revenue streams for their music."

Those areas are an important part of the picture, Lavery and Shepherd point out. Frequently they find that their clients don’t know which steps to take or which legal aspects are going to matter.

"Many times these things are a bit of a mystery to musicians and songwriters," Lavery said.

A lot of their perspective comes from having been in their clients’ shoes.

"Being active working musicians, writers and producers ourselves, we can relate to the artists we work with and the road ahead for many of them," Lavery said.

Thriving in Tough Times is a series developed by the business development centre at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax.