ashdown engineering

I will give you bullet point answers with links to more details if you would like to know more :)

• 30 years research goes into every guitar recommendation
• I ONLY sell recommendations. Every single guitar I sell, I am a specialist in for good reason - I believe in them and can give you qualified, evidence based research that can back up every claim I make
• Because of the unique way we do business - our suppliers value our involvement and provide us the same unique support as we offer our customers - ensuring you receive a level of support long term no other dealer can match
• As originally from a guitar teaching background, it was always imperative to me that every guitar played perfectly when our customers picked them up - and that is why every guitar is setup to perfection - to the customers specific requirements which even if they do not know what they are - we will help and advise on this. Many guitar shops will consider a beginner, or someone less aware, as easy prey for a quick sale or to move a poorly playing instrument - we use it as an opportunity to educate and support you on your guitar journey.
• We keep things personal. My 30 years have taught be best is always "small enough to be personal" and for this reason I employ 2 wonderful support staff in Jon & Jake. They are specialists in all the products we sell and they both share my personal ethos in how to treat our customers. Every time you call or contact us we will know you - we will understand your needs - and we will support you, hopefully for years to come.
• I have used the same incredible guitar technician for over 2 decades. The best are hard to find. So if you had your guitar set up and you loved it? You can rest assured you will love the next one too :)
• Other shops advertise they provide setups on guitars but we are the ONLY shop in the UK that can actually show you evidence of this on a daily basis. You will see a queue of guitars waiting for the setup process whatever day of the week you visit. Perfection takes time and our tech will take over an hour on average on every guitar sold to get your guitar playing to its true potential
• Warranty periods? Forget those - Our support is based on honesty and integrity - doing the right thing - so every person is treated with the honesty and respect they deserve. We will always go over and beyond your statutory rights

Well... I just checked and I see we are heading for 4000 reviews. Most review companies allow the retailer to filter out reviews so not to show the worst ones - and in fact its pretty shocking how much control a dealer has in this regard. The worst company for this is FEEFO - to the point that if I ever see a shop using FEEFO I will do a seperate search for customer reviews as I wont trust their results from the dealers website!! If you do the same - you will appreciate the feedback

As for ourselves, I show every single review - better or for worse and I take great pride in the almost incalculable number of 1 star reviews we receive - but in every single case I will try desperately to help the customer (and in fact if anything - maybe I try too hard as believe it or not this can annoy customers who just want to be angry when they feel let down!)

The bottom line is you have my word (as the owner of Richards Guitars) that there is nothing I will not do to ensure your best interests are looked after in the long term - even IF a mistake or a problem occurs. Mistakes will happen - problems will occur - but you have my word we will be the first to put things right should this unlikely event occur.

So maybe the conclusion is - perfection isnt possible - but our intent and desire is always 100% in support of your best interests - and I hope that is demonstrated clearly by our reviews you can find on our website, on Google, Trustpiilot & Facebook.

We provide our customers with a unique experience whether online and buying over a distance (providing service you wish you could find locally - a tag line I adopted many years ago) or when visiting us in person for our showroom experience which we are so proud to provide customers who travel far and wide to experience.

We are based centrally in the UK in Stratford Upon Avon, Warwickshire. We are situated opposite the train station so it couldn't be simpler for you if you arrive by train!

Of course - CALL US! Its THAT simple.

Doing all this on your own IS daunting and the only true way of helping you is to listen to your needs and by knowing more about you, your budget, your interests, your hopes and desires - we will be able to hone in on the best solution for you.

There is no one "cookie cutter" answer. I provide page after page of help and advice, blogs, videos - I have sold guitars and given advice for 30 years. I have taught guitar and provide YouTube video tutorials.... but the honest answer is.... I could not provide you a single link that could give you as good advice or guarantee of the "right" solution that beats just picking up the phone and calling 01789 263333 or click on our live chat.

Hand on heart, you could not be dealing with people who are more friendly - non "salesy" - and just want to help

So! if you need help, you would be crazy not to give us a call :).

You really do not need to feel overwhelmed and in fact, the people who take our advice not only end up with the most incredible guitars but they save SO much money by avoiding the marketing, hype and industry BS that surrounds so many products in the market - as we guide you to the best of the best in the industry - that suits your personal requirements.

Customers all over the World have experienced and loved our service. We aim to break down any fear or barrier to you feeling comfortable buying from us - and we guarantee you will be so glad you did use our service when you have the guitar in your hand :).

We want your experience to be memorable - and all for the right reasons!

Feel free to browse thousands of customer testimionials from every corner of the map!

We provide a next day delivery service on many accessories and smaller items but guitars go through our meticulous quality control and personalized setup service and this process can take several days as it is a genuine workshop environment and a lengthy process (over an hour) on every guitar to ensure your guitar plays perfectly.

If speed of delivery is most important to you, this may sound crazy - but we really are not the best people to use. There are many "box shifters" as I call them - who will be more than happy to take your money and ship your "box" - but any player will tell you that a professional setup, personalized to your playing requirement is worth its weight in gold and makes all the difference to your long term pleasure playing the guitar. Giving you the best instrument, playing to its best - is our priority - and this is why the customers who do use our service - come back to us time and time again. Please read our testimonials for customer experiences

I will be 100% honest. (Don't hate me! This is all sincrely written!)

We used to advertise price matching, but it wasted a lot of time as often the people requesting price matching are not necessarily to so focused on the values we hold so highly (£225 of setup and post sale services just being one of those!) so I introduced a very easy to use button that enabled customers to link to where they had seen the discounted price so we could match the price - if it was easy and possible for us to do so.

We ran it for at least 18 month to 2 years and more often than not the customers would use it in a way that is not intended (like linking to one in blue - but they want a "red" one etc) which compounded my view that you can only do so much to help "everyone" and made very few people "happy". The reality was clear - For 99% of our visitors, our prices are incredibly competitive - our service is literally second to none and anyone who values that aspect of our service will know our prices are more than honest - more than fair - and are incredibly good value considering what we actually do and the added value we provide.

So these days I say to customers, " Could we match the price? Yes. Could the company whose price you want us to match the price provide you the service and value added that we do? (which is valued at £225) Absolutely not

My sincere advice is, if you dont want or need our service, and you have no personal desire to support a business that puts you first - then use an alternative supplier.

If you value old school dedication to your best interests - a specialist who will always be here to support you long term (and you have my word on that) - nobody would be more grateful for your support than me, my team, and family, all of whom rely on your belief in us.

My philosophy in life is to give twice back to anyone who provides me any opportunity - and I follow that philosophy when dealing with every customer who has invested in our service. Your order is an opportunity to prove to you that you made the right choice - and I would never want to let you down. If that means more to you than a random listing you found on Ebay (because you will always find one if you look hard enough!) - then we will be here for you!