New York, NY (October 13, 2026)—Roland Store New York City opened on Saturday, October 10, with a day of festivities, technology and music. The invitation-only event saw hundreds of artists, industry pros and more pass through the new retail space over the course of the day, taking in jam sessions, speeches from Roland CEO Masahiro Minowa and Roland Americas CEO Manuele Barbini, and more. The new facility marks the music technology company’s first retail space in North America.
Located at 414 West 14th Street in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District, the store is well-placed in a cultural hotspot, with neighbors like Google’s New York headquarters, Chelsea Market and the Highline each less than a minute’s walk away.
The site is Roland’s third brick-and-mortar retail space, following the opening of a London store in 2022 and a Tokyo location the following year; however, the new store in New York also represents the fulfillment of a long-held corporate goal.
“Roland US was established in 1978, six years after we were founded in Osaka, Japan, and has been based on the West Coast for nearly 50 years,” said CEO Masahiro Minowa in his welcome speech. “For many years, we dreamed of establishing a stronger presence on the East Coast, so this is such an important milestone, and I’m very happy to be here with all of you today.”
The performance stage was busy throughout the opening day event, continuously featuring artists whose talents illustrated the instruments and technologies available at the store, culminating with a finale set by legendary producer/turntablist, DJ Jazzy Jeff.
The entire facility, including warehouse space, is more than 9,000 square feet. The public areas are divided into a variety of Zones that flow together, each dedicated to different markets and Roland brands, including Boss and Drum Workshop (DW).
Greeting visitors is a brand merchandize area, filled with Roland-emblazoned clothes and memorabilia. Next to it sits the Dance & DJ Zone, dedicated to music production tools, along with a pristine, vintage TR-808 drum machine kept under glass.
Further inside the store are multiple V-Drums setups, a piano area, a variety of synthesizer stations featuring different keyboards, a DW Drums area outfitted with multiple kits, a performance stage and the Boss Cavern, which features guitar effects and amplifiers.
Each space is intended to provide visitors with opportunities to get hands-on with equipment and instruments, whether to try items out, take 30-minute workshops or get one-on-one sessions with product experts.
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While the company sees the retail store as a place to try and buy products, the space is also intended to serve as a connection point between the company and its most ardent supporters.
“New York has a strong foundation in music and art,” Minowa acknowledged in his speech. “We have a great respect for the many music cultures born in this city. It was an important place for us to build closer communications with musicians and creators… when I look back, our successes always come from our dialogue with musicians and creators. Our commitment will remain the same—building stronger community connections and inspiring and empowering music creators—so let’s design the future together.”
