Havant Music Mart

It's hard to figure out if a couple of the reviewers are talking about the same music shop that I use. I have found the owner Bob to be extremely helpful and knowledgeable. He keeps a very large stock of instruments, ranging in price from over £1000 guitars down to a thrifty £50 Ukulele. His shop may not be adequate for the young and obviously rich musicians who didn't enjoy their visit , but it is certainly ideal for decent and affordable mid range instruments and is treasure trove for newbie musicians who are just testing the tricky waters of instrument buying. It's also a handy place to buy bits and pieces such as strings etc.

Highly recommended

Went into the shop last weekend to buy some bass strings. The owner was very helpful and made sure to ask if there was anything i needed or he could help with. There was a younger guy sat in the work room working on a guitar setup who seemed to be doing a really good job.
Couldn't have asked for better service.
After making my purchase he then offered to turn the lights on to the side room so I could have a look around.

I have read the bad review on here and have to say I think those people just had the wrong attitude when it came to dealing with the owner of this shop.

Will definitely go again and recommend for anyone looking for entry and mid level instruments at great prices.

We visited Havant music mart today, cannot fault the service! My son is very much a beginner in his guitar journey. The Owner was happy to offer advice without any hard sell. We came away with all we needed at a very reasonable price. Will defiantly be revisiting!

I have only recently discovered this shop and I am so glad I found it. A great selection of guitars in most cases cheaper than you could find on E bay and some higher end guitars also at very reasonable prices. I found the service to be friendly and the proprietor is very knowledgeable as he should be after more than 40 years in the business. I have been in the shop when he has dealt with a number of problems for people in a helpful and friendly way in one case offering advice that actually lost him a sale. The shop also carries a good range of spares from a bridge pin upwards.

I find it hard to believe that this is the same shop and owner that I have read reviews for further down the page. It would seem that the bad reviews are all from people who had little intention of actually buying anything and they should remember that a shop is a place of business not something put there for their amusement. As for the comments from one person calling the owner a “Cockwomble” [I had to look up the meaning although the sentiment was clear] Surely this is not acceptable in a review especially as the shop owner has no right to reply. However if we are going to descend to vulgar name calling, you sir are obviously a complete and utter Berk.

I will never enter this shop again!!! The owner actually frightened me!!! I arranged to meet my son there but he was waiting outside the shop very upset as he'd been told to get out if he wasn't buying anything!!!! He loves music and guitars and was clearly upset at being told to basically clear off. Because of this I went into the shop and politely asked the owner why he said this as all my son had wanted to do was look round the shop. He had been so excited we had managed to find it. The owner was rude to me stating its my shop and its up to me who shops in here. At this point I felt very uncomfortable and made to leave. He then came flying from behind the counter and near enough chased me out onto the street shouting at me!! I will be informing the local council as this is a terrible way to make people feel.

I visited Havant Music Mart today and wonder how I never knew it was there! What a fantastic old style shop. It is packed with so many beautiful instruments, books, spare parts, records and accessories all at unbelievable prices. It caters for all ages and abilities with some really good friendly advice from the owner, Bob. I am now starting my harmonica journey very happy and will definitely be going back to buy some Blues music. For all your music needs I highly recommend this shop.

Went to get a strap attached to my Ukulele and they attached it for free. Huge collection of guitars and ukuleles, prices mostly better than online actually. There are also some really interesting vintage and used ones that you wouldn't be able to even find on the web. Definitely recommended if you are looking for your first instrument, I regret buying one online before coming here!

Edit: Some previous reviews complain about the owner. He was extremely helpful and pleasant to me - these reviews talk about his reaction to their bad behaviour, which he has the right to be angry about!

I bought a ukulele around 6 months ago in Brighton (a tanglewood) and sadly it had a horrible buzz on the A string which unfortunately put me off from practising. I took my ukulele to Bob who was incredibly knowledgeable and knew straight away what the problem was and also had extensive knowledge on the brand too! Despite that he said he would be off a couple of days during the week, he managed to fix it in a couple of days and my goodness does it now sound amazing! What I absolutely love is every time I have gone into the shop, there is always another musician in there who takes the time to talk to you and what topped off the experience for me was that a gentleman who knew Bob well, wanted to have a go on my ukulele and decided to play it in his shop! Such a brilliant and positive atmosphere! Thank you!!