MUMBAI: Music retail store Furtados completes 150 years of its existence this year. Keeping in the mind the Sesquicentennial celebration, the store has planned a series of activities. Part of this celebration included getting an international artist (drummer and multi-percussionist) Pete Lockett to conduct a Drum Workshop at the Furtados School of Music on 27 February.

Furtados director Joseph Gomes said, “Furtados is celebrating 150 years of serving the music community in India. This year will see a slew of events and activities celebrating 150 years since Furtados’ incorporation.” Bernard Xavier Furtado established B X Furtado & Sons in 1865. “It was purchased by John Gomes in 1952, and now, his three sons and daughter currently manage the business, along with a team of passionate and highly motivated individuals. The business has grown from a single store operation to 17 retail stores and a large distribution business serving the whole of India,” he added. The store recently set-up a publishing company and also run Furtados School of Music- their education vertical, “to serve the needs of making music available to all.”

The company has partnered with many international publishing companies and is making their product available in India at low-cost.  Gomes stated, “Furtados is by far the leader in music books sales in India and has possibly the largest collection of music books available in ready stock across the continent.” Furtados stocks and distributes music books by all major publishers across the world and has also entered into a joint venture with the leading publisher of sheet music in Europe, Music Sales Limited.

Sales of guitars and keyboards are doing well for Furtados due to their easy-to-carry feature. In terms of popular brands, Gibson is the preferred choice in guitars, while Taylor has received good response in acoustic guitars. The store also has an in-house brand- Granada, which is targeted to consumers that have a low budget but require quality products. In percussion, there is one specific product that has picked up well in India for the last year and a half- the ‘Cajon’.

The store is also associated with many music institutions in India like True School of Music, Swarnabhoomi Academy of Music and their own school under the name Futados School of Music amongst others.

In the past, Furtados has been involved in several events throughout the year by providing gear and support for various events.

Furtados School of Music (FSM) is currently re-launching in Bengaluru and other parts of south India. They currently operate out of 17 school and independent centres in Mumbai and Pune and impart education to children as young as 4 years old and even senior citizens who would like to experience and learn music.

In 2014, DSG Consumer Partners (DSGCP) invested an undisclosed amount in Furtados School of Music (FSM Education Private Limited), in the Series A funding of the academy.