Iconic Mansons Guitar Shop location to remain a guitar store under new owners

The site of Mansons Guitar Shop, the iconic UK store that has supplied gear for some of music’s biggest names, will continue its operations as a guitar shop after it’s been purchased by new owners.

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Earlier this year, Mansons announced that they will be closing their doors for good after the shop’s lease runs out in June 2023. At the time, co-owners Hugh Manson and Adrian Ashton expressed their hopes for a new owner to take over, though they acknowledged that such an outcome would be almost impossible given the disastrous economic conditions of the country.

However, it appears that luck is on Mansons’ side, as fellow Exeter store Life Guitars Co is now set to move into the premises later this year.

Announcing the good news on Facebook, Life Guitars Co said, “Huge announcement: A new era for Life Guitars Co! We are incredibly excited to announce that from May 15 onwards, we will be calling the current premises of Mansons Guitar Shop in McCoys Arcade our new home.”

“We have been in discussions with Hugh and Adrian (the owners of Mansons) since they announced their retirement earlier in the year and they’ve been instrumental and supportive in helping to make this exciting transition a reality.”

“We look forward to keeping the passionate flame of guitar excellence burning bright in that building for many years to come!”

Joff Alexander-Frye, co-founder of Life Guitars added, “It is a huge honour to be moving into the space previously occupied by the incredible Mansons Guitar Shop team. Most of our team bought their first ever guitars there and we deeply respect their legacy and what they have worked so hard to build over the last three decades.”

The move also means that Life Guitars Co will be saying goodbye to their original store location on South Street which has served them since their launch in 2020. In the meantime, it’s business as usual for Mansons until 29 April, with the store’s reopening date set for 15 May.

Life Guitars will also be retaining Mansons’ phone number to make the switch as smooth and “uninterrupted” as possible for customers.

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