A COUPLE who turned their violin shop into an online business managed to sell it during lockdown ahead of their retirement with the help of a Swindon company.

Andrew and Gillian Riley founded The String Zone Limited in 2004 to supply strings and accessories for violins, violas, cellos and double basses to support their traditional violin shop Andrew Riley Violins.

They then moved it online as an independent company separate from the brick-and-mortar shop and began to consider their retirement plans in 2019.

In a deal led and executed by Swindon-based corporate finance specialists Watersheds, The String Zone Limited has been sold to wholesale distributor Strings and Things.

Watersheds partner Dan Wright said Andrew and Gillian had some specific requirements for their ideal buyer.

He said: “Andrew’s early career had been in repairing and restoring instruments of the violin family, before he decided 16 years ago to open a traditional shop augmented by a modern e-commerce offering of strings and accessories highly targeted at the classical string player of all abilities.

“Over the years they had put in a lot of hard work, employed staff, and moved with the times to reinvent the firm as a very successful online-only company.

"They wanted to reap the rewards of their investment and perseverance, but they also wanted the business to continue to serve their loyal customers, and to offer those staff who wanted to stay on the opportunity to do so.

“I was delighted that we were able to introduce the couple to two very different potential buyers, to allow them to select the deal that best suited them from a financial perspective and in terms of the future of the business.

Watersheds generated a lot of interest in the business and attracted two serious buyers despite the pandemic posing a few problems.

Mr Wright added: “The pandemic meant the buyer couldn’t inspect The String Zone’s premises to see how stock was stored, and how much space it took up. So we organised a virtual video tour for the buyer, which put their mind at rest.

"In the meantime, the buyer, appreciated that internet sales were increasing as lockdown began to take effect. The sale has provided the buyer with breadth in terms of musical offer and provided the most resilient form of access to the retail market and a second revenue stream.”

Andrew Riley said: “Watersheds generated a lot of interest leading to two very proceedable buyers, which reassured us that the offer we accepted was competitive. I was pleased that the deal was able to go through considering almost everything had come to a halt because of the pandemic lockdown.

“I liked the fact that we were only charged a fee on successful completion of the deal, and I would certainly recommend Watersheds to anyone looking to sell their business.”

Simon Hore at Thrings provided legal services to Andrew and Gillian.