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K.H.S.--the definition of a global business: factories in China and Taiwan, distribution points throughout the world, and global brand names like Jupiter and Mapex, are part of a comprehensive strategy to deliver the ultimate value to the consumer.

Article Excerpt
Among musical instrument manufacturers, few epitomize the term "global" more than K.H.S. Musical Instrument Co., Ltd. Centered in Taiwan, KHS has national headquarters, distribution facilities, factories, major holdings and corporate partners in North America, Asia, and Europe. KHS manufactures Jupiter band instruments, Altus high-end flutes, Majestic concert percussion, Ross mallet percussion, Mapex drums, Black Panther snare drums, Janus hardware, Walden guitars, and Hercules stands. This rags-to-riches powerhouse is also closely associated with Matth. Hohner AG of Germany, whose brands include Hohner harmonicas, accordions, melodicas, recorders and guitars and bases; Sonor drums; and Orff educational instruments. KHS also makes a wide range of products on an OEM basis for a number of companies worldwide. As it enters its 75th year, KHS stands apart in the diversity and international reach of its products as one of the most dynamic names in the business.

The letters KHS stand for Kung Hsue She, meaning "a company contributing to schools and culture." It was founded by Tsu-Cheng Hsieh in 1930, and Hsieh family members still share control over the company's varied operations. Wu-Hong Hsieh, T.C. Hsieh's grandson, serves as current chairman of KHS's musical instrument division.

KHS began modestly as a single bookstore. By 1937 T.C. Hsieh had faced a number of obstacles that would have ruined many less determined entrepreneurs. Japanese colonization, wartime instability, and Allied bombing campaigns spelled an uncertain future for the Hsieh family. After WWII Japan surrendered Taiwan to Allied forces, but wartime conditions continued in Taiwan due to the Chinese civil war. In the 1950s, when U.S. assistance helped the Taiwanese economy recover, T.C. Hsieh's son Ching-Li Hsieh began manufacturing harmonicas at KHS, the nation's first industrialized producer with 40 employees building instruments on an assembly line. Four years later the fast-growing company began building wind instruments and established an import-export business focusing on musical instruments. C. L. Hsieh's son Wu-Hong Hsieh assumed leadership of KHS in the late '70s.

Like many Asian manufacturers, KHS began manufacturing products for the OEM market. Wu Hsieh had bigger plans for the company. With counsel from longtime friend and former Kaman Marketing Director Gabe Ireland, Hsieh set out to elevate KHS to a new status. Ireland, current chairman of KHS America who recently retired as president of Jupiter Band Instruments, recalls that Hsieh shared his view of the major crossroads...

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