Improving Business in the Wilmington Region

MojoTone Celebrates Grand Opening

Congressman David Rouzer was among the dignitaries joining the staff of Mojotone LLC in marking the April ribbon-cutting of their new Burgaw facility in Burgaw. The fast-growing company has operated in Pender County since 2005, but its previous space had become inadequate.

“Being in this new building definitely opens up more opportunities for manufacturing and fulfillment services,” said Michael McWhorter, the company’s co-owner. With its high ceilings, the building also enables Mojotone, which employs over 60 workers, to focus on distribution operations. “It’s a big deal to be able to offer 50- to 100-pound speaker boxes and ship them directly to someone else’s customers,” McWhorter explains. “That’s the growth side of our business, and the potential is pretty huge.”

Leaders from Pender County and the Town of Burgaw supported Mojotone’s expansion into the 40,000-square-foot building. So too did Pender Progress Corporation, a local non-profit group that constructed the building in 2011 as part of its product development and job creation mission. The role of Four County Electric Membership Corporation also was crucial. The cooperative tapped a $1 million U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant (“REDLG”) loan to help Mojotone complete the building’s interior.

“Numerous individuals and organizations worked together to make this possible, and they all have reason to be proud,” Scott Satterfield, CEO of Wilmington Business Development, told the gathering. “Not least of these are the diligent and talented people at Mojotone itself, a company whose exciting future truly captures the imagination.”

Founded in 2000 in Winston-Salem, Mojotone makes amps, audio cabinets and components for electric guitars. Its growth is being spurred by an expanding product line. Mojotone sells to retail music stores, manufacturers and directly to musicians. Its international customer base includes amplifier makers in the U.S. and Europe, and users of its products include Rush, Eric Clapton, Garth Brooks and Iron Maiden.