Harrods closes piano department after 118 years

Harrods is closing its piano department after 118 years of trading, it has been announced. The move reflects an overall downward trend in piano sales in recent years - as little as 4,000 acoustic pianos are sold in total in the UK each year.

A Harrods employee told The Times: "It's really sad. This is one of the oldest departments in Harrods, but pianos don't do as well as handbags."

Recent price-slashes designed to move stock include the reduction of a Bechstein piano from £94,000 to £66,000. Harrods also confirmed that while the department itself was closing and any pianos in stock would be removed from the shop, they would still deal with piano sales on a case-by-case basis.

The news comes as a contrast to the news in December that American piano manufacturer Steinway is no longer planning to sell up after 17-month period of considering their options.