A ‘one-stop’ music shop in Furness is looking for new owners after ‘succumbing to the internet’.

After 26 years of trade, The Full Octave in Dalton has closed its doors and will no longer be selling instruments.

While the shop on Market Street has shut, owner John Metcalfe, who opened the store 26 years ago, is still planning to carry on working on pianos and said that side of the business is still ‘alive and kicking’.

The family business was originally established in the early 1950s by Arthur Metcalfe and continued by his son John.

John has tuned and repaired pianos his whole life and expanded the business to include woodwind instruments, guitars, folk, sheet music and gifts, as well as all things piano.

He said: “It's purely the retail side which is disappearing.

“We are still offering our piano services, tuning, repairs and restoration, which was always the bread and butter of the business.”

The premises, which are for sale, is split across two sites. It is made up of the retail space plus a workshop, which John said would be an ideal setup for a furniture refurbishing business.

He said: "I’d love it to go to someone who will use it rather than see it go to housing.”

As his colleague relocates to Manchester, John is looking all over the country for someone who has the knowledge to join him in repairing pianos or someone who would like to learn the art.

He said: “Very few people do what we offer, restoring good quality second-hand pianos so that that they can go on and have another 50 years of life. It would be good to keep the skillset going.”

John said losing the shop was bad for the area but a ‘sign of the times’ as people turn to online shopping.

“We’re a bit sad, but life goes on. I’d love to thank everyone who has supported us throughout the years," he said.

If you need a repair job or help tuning your piano, John is available for appointments and can be contacted via The Full Octave website.