We had been looking for a specific grand piano for several months in the US. Local piano shops were expensive, did not carry the exact piano for which we were looking, and did not seem to want to listen to what we desired. Then, we came across The Piano Shop Bath which happened to have the exact piano for which we had been searching.
We contacted Jon Kelly of the Piano Shop with a little hesitation: 1. attempting to buy a piano sight unseen, 2. the cost of shipping a large
instrument from England to the US. However, before we made our decision, Jon listened carefully to what we wanted, answered all of our questions, and provided us with numerous pictures, videos and even sound clips (from Diana, a Piano Shop Pianist). He contacted a world renowned fine arts shipper and got price quotes for air and sea so we would know the complete cost (no hidden fees).
After doing some more research, we decided to purchase the piano and ship by sea.
About 9 weeks after the purchase, the piano was delivered and installed into our home in pristine condition. Prior to shipment, Jon
had brought to our attention several blemishes on the case, which had been expertly fixed by the Piano Shop prior to shipment; we cannot detect those spots even upon close inspection.
We had watched online videos of brand new pianos being uncrated from other dealers and felt that the crating/packing of our instrument was even more substantial and protective.
Our piano came in under our budget (and much lower than what we would have paid from a local dealer) and we loved working with Jon and all the people at the Piano Shop.
Plus, we have a better story to tell than just going to a local shop and buying a piano!