Last weekend saw the closure of Cambridge’s last remaining guitar shop, PMT. For some this may not even register but for many this will be a sad day with the loss of another important part of the musical eco-system.
"It's a sad day for Cambridge and the wider musical eco-system in the city"
It’s easy to blame it all on ecommerce and its inexorable rise. We all understand and experience its many benefits but, as with so many things in life, these can come with a cost. In the case of the music industry I believe this is even more acute, musical instruments are more than just another product, they need care and attention in setup, maintenance, and support especially for those just beginning their journey.
We’ve seen an astonishing increase in the number of inferior quality instruments that are either not fit for purpose, unrepairable, or both. This can harm the playing experience and, in the worst case, even put players off completely! For years music shops have provided vital services, allowing customers to try and feel things before they buy, repairs to increase the longevity of instruments and support sustainability of the industry. I believe this is now under threat as is the wider musical landscape.
At Millers Music, we still believe in the value that physical retail can provide, especially for the Music Industry and in a city with musical roots as deep as Cambridge’s. Musical instruments are inherently tactile, with sound being so subjective and personal.
Music shops provide this and can create those magical experiences that no online shop can ever match - to see, hear, and feel instruments as well as getting quality advice. They can create relationships and opportunities: to try and compare multiple products side-by-side, to build relationships or make connections, to offer incredible experiences such as trying a grand piano or hearing a high-end guitar and maybe even jamming along. These might just inspire a young mind or rekindle the spirit of a returning player.
Want to see, hear, and try any of our instruments?
Our Cambridge city centre showroom is the perfect place to visit, one of the top shopping destinations in the UK with world class sights, restaurants, cafes, and shopping.
We stock the leading range of digital, hybrid, acoustic, silent, upright, and grand pianos in our beautiful Cambridge showroom.
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Our highly-trained demonstrators can show you the range, you can compare models, and make sure you make the right decision.
Not only that, music shops provide vital services such as repairs, maintenance, and support that can be difficult if not impossible to achieve hundreds of miles away. The experts and technicians that provide these are and will be a crucial part for all our futures in a more circular and sustainable economy, something that we should be acutely aware of with the recent closure of Newark’s courses for musical instrument building and repair.
Over the coming weeks in a series of blog articles, I’ll attempt to explore some of the underlying reasons for our current issues we face in the music industry and wider music community: hopefully offering some constructive solutions, as well as calls to action.
What I’d like to focus on right now is what we plan to do to support the local music community and ask for your input so that we can help to provide some of the products and services needed.
Get in touch and tell us how we can help
Some questions we've already been asked
In short, we understand that there will be challenges but we're doing what we can to try to support the music community. Many of PMT's were and are customers of ours and we're working on a number of initiatives to help.
Are we going to reopen our Guitar & Drum department?
Sadly, the answer right now is no. At present, we just don’t believe the market supports it. We exited this area in 2020 and simply couldn't do anything credible in our current location.
We’re not ruling out something small in the future, potentially an acoustic-focused offering with nylon and steel-strung instruments including a selection of bluegrass and folk instruments which Millers was always known for. We will almost certainly be adding a few classical guitar packs for beginners.
What are you doing to support musicians?
We are already busy expanding our accessory selection with a wider range of guitar strings as well as other accessories such as capos, tuners, straps, cables, and more. We will be offering ALL guitarists and drummers some introductory offers by signing up to our mailing list and sharing with your friends. This will help us to keep you informed as we develop our offering and we really need your support to make this work.
Will you be offering repairs and setups?
We firmly believe in reusing instruments, ensuring they’re properly set up and helping to reduce our environmental impact but the simple answer right now is no. We simply don’t have the specialists any more, but we’re working on some options. We’re busy contacting local repairers and luthiers to find those people who can help.
However, we are looking to run restringing and maintenance workshops for those who have guitars either bought online, secondhand, or simply found in cupboards or in attics. We firmly believe that the Music Industry can do so much more to support sustainability efforts by reusing quality instruments and we want to help with this.
Again, sign up to our mailing and we’ll keep you updated.
Why can’t you just open a guitar department?
The reasons are more complicated, the market has been very challenging which is why so many music stores have closed and more are sure to follow. We’ll explore this in some blogs over the coming weeks so keep following.
Simon
With over 25 years experience, I've been fortunate enough to literally travel the world visiting factories and music shops, talking to master technicians and engineers, building up a huge knowledge and understanding of the market, products, and concepts.
I am driven by the belief that music is hugely important and should be accessible to all. I advocate for repair and reuse in the industry and across society.