Guitar maker Gibson opens store off London’s Oxford Street

Gibson Garage London is the brand’s second store globally after it opened the first in its hometown of Nashville, Tennessee, in 2021. Photograph: Gibson Garage London

Gibson, the Nashville guitar maker beloved by Jimmy Page to Ray Davies, is opening its first big store outside the US just off London’s Oxford Street, where VIP visitors will be ushered into a secret bar accessed via a door hidden in a red phone box.

Opening to the public on Saturday, the 4,500 sq ft (420 sq metres) of space on Eastcastle Street is within stumbling distance of the 100 Club, the music venue where bands such as the Rolling Stones, the Clash and Blur have played. It is also close to Denmark Street, once home to recording studios and music publishers and still home to London’s biggest cluster of instrument stores.