Celebrating 45 years!
Article posted on 2nd February 2010 at 11:29 am
2010 marks the 45th Anniversary of the opening of our showrooms in Cheltenham.
Horace Mathews established Musical Instruments (Cheltenham) Ltd in 1965, having gained experience working for Dale, Forty & Co.who at the time occupied large premises on Cheltenham’s prestigious Promenade. Horace had Reg Heard, a well known local jazz saxophonist, as his business partner at this time.
Horace Mathews recruited David Warr to eastablish a piano workshop in order to undertake piano repairs and restorations. However, at this point the premises in Winchcombe Street simply consisted of a small ground floor showroom and therefore it was necessary to rent additional premises nearby in which David could work.
The business developed on all fronts – pianos, musical instruments, sheet music etc - and it was apparent that additional showroom space was required in order to expand.
Fortunately the opportunity came about to aquire the complete building on two floors at which point the business then took on its present configuration.
The increased ground floor showroom area made it possible to stock a broader range of pianos, from small Bentley and Zender models to top of the range Bluthners and Bechsteins.
This also provided the opportunity to move the piano workshops to the first floor. This meant that customers could climb the spiral staircase, inspect the workshops and discuss all aspects of restoration with David – a service that is still available today.
In the 1980′s the company promoted Piano Exhibitions at the Pump Rooms and the Town Hall, with support from various piano manufacturers. These were very successful events that helped put the company ‘on the map’ in the area.
Mr Mathews retired in 1998 at which time the company was aquired by the Whelpdale Maxwell and Codd Group -a British piano manufacturer and distributor- before it returned to private ownership in 2003.
The company continues to supply pianos to many of the best known schools and colleges in the Cotswolds in addition to satisfying the needs of our many customers who purchase pianos for home use.
Our 45thy Anniversary provides a fitting opportunity to thank all our customers who have supported us over the years and we look forward to endeavouring to offer good service in the years to come.
Various celebratory events are planned so watch this space for more details!