My two cents worth.
Firstly, I should declare an attitude: I loathe "Corporations" and "The Corporate Way". Here in N.Z. it's hard to purchase living necessities without having your money going to the corporation.
It's very much the Kiwi way to support the underdog, partially I guess because being so tiny, we're an underdog ourselves. Personally, I have a fierce sense of support for the little guy, hence, in part, my love of Guilds.
I should also confess to a smug sense of satisfaction in owning underdog stuff that's the equal of, and often better than, the hyped-up and often seriously over-priced offerings from "The Man".
For me, the real Guild is over, finished !
Guilds were lovingly made in "little" factories by caring artisans. They didn't put shoddy crap out onto the market like the big guys did, and do.
I have no knowledge about current Guild quality issues; by all accounts the new Chinese and Tacoma guitars are a very nicely-made product.
But they're "Guilds" by somebody else.
It was suggested somewhere here (I think), that in an ideal world the name would be taken over by a group of artisans, and a top-quality, limited production line would be produced. Now, that would be nice, and appeals to the romantic in me.
But, in that very unlikely event occurring. I think still, (but I'm a little equivocal) that "Guild", the real thing, is dead.