News
Andy’s Guitar Centre closes
Andy Barrett Jun 26 2007, 3:00pm
Famous Denmark Street fixture fades away
The vintage guitar specialist and luthier to the West End of London, Andy’s Guitar Centre, went into receivership on April 24th.
The store has been a popular feature of Denmark Street for nearly 30 years, since its owner, Andy Preston (pictured) bought the store in March 1978 and has been a regular haunt for vintage enthusiasts as well as rock star clientele.
Over the years, the shop has expanded to take up more and more floors at 27 Denmark Street, established the Overwater Guitar Company with Chris May (which is still going strong in the north east of England), was the first guitar store with an internet presence during the 1990s, and lastly grew into drum sales and repairs as well.
Silki Kalra, an examiner with the Insolvency Service, told MI Pro that she would be interviewing Preston shortly with a view to appointing a trustee.
While the news is sad, it is not exactly surprising as at least one high profile ‘view to purchase’ over the past few years has fallen through following due diligence. It is likely that the internet will be blamed for the company’s collapse as the second hand trade in guitars has largely been turned over to the internet, particularly through the international eBay site.
