UK Dealer for Fisitalia?

[Cheshire Chris]

Does anyone know of a UK dealer who sells Fisitalia accordions, please?

Thanks,

Chris

 

[Walker]

I believe there have been various dealers in the UK over the years. But things can change, so maybe a quick email direct to the Fisitalia website would give the most up to date answer. I would not be surprised if there are a number of possible options. I noticed on their website the company can also quote you direct if you have a specific model you like.

I think Fisitalia is a good choice, they seems to be successful and make some lovely accordions.

 

[Siegmund]

"Who is the distributor for brand X in country Y?" would be a really handy sticky post in a forum, or wiki page somewhere. It can be amazingly hard to dig up this information on one's own... I expect each of us here has done it, or tried to do it, for a couple favorite brands in our home country or one close by.

 

[petch]

I found that it would be considerably cheaper to fly to Italy, spend a week there, buy an accordion from the manufacturer and then book an extra seat on the flight back than buying from UK distributors for Italian brands

 

[Cheshire Chris]

I found that it would be considerably cheaper to fly to Italy, spend a week there, buy an accordion from the manufacturer and then book an extra seat on the flight back than buying from UK distributors for Italian brands

Can you just walk into the Fisitalia factory in Castelfidardo and come out half an hour later with an accordion? I was under the (mistaken?) impression that they took months to deliver when ordered?

Chris

 

[petch]

Can you just walk into the Fisitalia factory in Castelfidardo and come out half an hour later with an accordion? I was under the (mistaken?) impression that they took months to deliver when ordered?

Chris

I was in contact with Victoria about their accordions and yeah, it's 3-4 months (a lot more for anything custom). That's not so different from UK dealers though, they tend to have very little on hand to sell, and what they do have seem to be the smaller/cheaper models. So depending on what you're looking for, the wait might be similar.

I would just get in touch with them directly and see what they say

 

[Walker]

From my experiences of Italy, to visit the accordion factories of Castelfidardo, Stradella and Vercelli, if you are looking for something specific you may need to search quite hard or perhaps have an accordion made to order. The last time I was in Castelfidardo at the start of 2020 (before Covid kicked-off) there were very few accordions ready made. Musikmesse in Frankfurt is better for seeing and comparing accordions, but that's still cancelled for 2022. If possible, I think it is better to buy an accordion you can actually see and play, otherwise if you have one made without hearing or seeing, there is a risk you might not like it.

If Fisitalia have the right instrument in stock you could calculate the cost of flights, food and accomodation. Might be worth it just to hear if you actually like the instrument. Alternatively, if you can buy direct from the factory and get the instrument sent to you, this would save on the journey, but miss out on the experience. Either way, there is UK VAT and Duty payable on imports, which needs to be factored into your budget, and possibly transport costs too.

The benefit in buying an instrument (in stock hopefully) from a reputable accordion shop is in the after-service in the possible case of problems. You really do not want to have to send the accordion to and fro to Italy if there is a problem etc or send it to a random repairer. Maybe, you could think of it as supporting a local business too. At the end of the day, there are very few shops dedicated to accordions left, and I don't actually think that's a good thing. I think now more than ever, shops will appear more reasonable on price because I am not convinced that, all things considered, it would be all that much cheaper buying from Castelfidardo. It's the adventure more than the money that makes the difference in my view.​

 

[Cheshire Chris]

The benefit in buying an instrument (in stock hopefully) from a reputable accordion shop is in the after-service in the possible case of problems. You really do not want to have to send the accordion to and fro to Italy if there is a problem etc or send it to a random repairer. Maybe, you could think of it as supporting a local business too.​

I entirely agree with you, and that's why my question which started this thread was "Does anyone know of a UK dealer who sells Fisitalia accordions, please?" I would much rather buy from a shop here in the UK if I can find one who stocks the instrument I want.

Cheers,

Chris

 

[Walker]

I have just sent Fisitalia a message through Facebook... Will see what they say.

 

[Cheshire Chris]

That's extremely kind of you. Thank you for your help.

Chris

 

[CT]

Does anyone know of a UK dealer who sells Fisitalia accordions, please?

Thanks,

Chris

Alan Shute is an agent for Fisitalia. There are a small selection of new Fisitalia accordions on the Squeezebox Marketplace website and I'm sure Alan can be contacted though them.

 

[Cheshire Chris]

Thanks! Appreciate the help.

Chris

 

[saundersbp]

I would just get in touch with them directly and see what they say

Sound advice. The UK market seems sadly relatively insignificant commercially for the Italian accordion builders (its vast majority Asia and to a lesser extent Europe - they are quite open about this if you ask them) and so our tiny UK market is reflected in the lack of retail outlets on a substantial scale over here. It's very good to support UK dealers and businesses if you can of course and also to pay the premium if you can be sure they are adding something to the party. There are some very nice and helpful people out there, but important questions for me would be:
- how big/solvent is your business? (of course you can't reasonably expect an answer but you can get an idea if its a registered company on https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/)
- when are you planning to retire as a dealer? (this can be sooner than you might expect)
- how many years are left in your distribution agreement for brand X or Y?
- if something goes wrong with the instrument I buy who is going to fix it? (to the best of my knowledge you only need one hand to count the number of people in the UK that can do absolutely top drawer work on an expensive instrument)

There's a confusing ethical part in all this for a British person. My family are all business people and it was drummed into me as a child to buy British. Then we became enthusiastic Europeans (or at least some of us did - I certainly did) and so we bought European of which we were a part. Now of course we have an identity crisis or at least a complicated identity! Some countries also have a more customer-centric culture. Obviously the States is famous for it, but I've also found great service with musical instruments in Slovenia, Germany and (if you are patient) Italy. Of course if you are buying a lot of something rather than a single unit, anyone with any sense is going to give you great service, and the UK is no exception!

 

[Beemer]

Chris,
Can you say why the Fistalia brand is especially important to you over other Castelfidardo brands, e.g. my awaited Scandalli? The delivery on mine is four months (to end of May), but that is one month longer than normal for an LMMM model because all of the Castelfidardo companies have been affected by Covid.

 

[Cheshire Chris]

Quite simply that it was the only major Italian maker that I couldn't find a UK dealer for. If I'm spending that kind of money on an accordion I want to be able to go into a shop and play it before I buy. I've seen a number of Fisitalia accordions, and I like them very much, but I wanted to know where I would go and see one before potentially buying. That question's now been answered.

Cheers,

Chris