Worldwide Sax History
Sarge's Visionary label: "WORLD WIDE SAX" in the dawn of the internet boom.
Sarge: "I want to sell and ship vintage professional saxophones all over the world."
- 1997 - founded by Steve "Sarge" Stransky in Seattle, WA
- 2000 - Moved to Everett, WA
- 01-07 - Sarge's business growth, a few apprentices, long hours, silver restorations, studying with gurus, the reputation holds and grows.
- 2008 - Chadd enters as apprentice.
- 2011 - Chadd as official Owner of WWS.
- 2012 - Sarge passes away. Chadd's business growth, a few apprentices, long hours, silver restorations, studying with gurus, the reputation holds and grows.
- 2014 - WWS moves to larger facility. (5 miles South, still in Everett)
- 2016 - The launch of the new website (and sorting of 23,000+ image files!!!)
- 2018 - Moves to Tukwila, WA (30 miles south; 10 miles south of Seattle)
Humble Beginnings:
All great things start in a garage (garage bands, Microsoft,...). The main shop delivered expert craftsmanship and care. You'd never have guessed that it operated out of a 400 sq ft 1914 garage! It was half Sarge's Studio, half WWS.
Early Sarge
Young Chadd
...who later started/built a student sax business "Only Saxophones" in 2010 from home. Sarge helped! I think it was test from Sarge; he wanted to see if I was capable of be trusted with WWS.
NOTE: Sarge told me the best compliment in regards to allowing me to buy WWS: "If I didn't think you could do it, I would have sold it all off... in pieces if I had to." I'll take that kind of compliment.
Moving Day
December 2014: Moving day to the new shop
August 2018, New Shop: Tukwila, WA
(Photo from August 2019)
