Steinway & Sons

The Selmer Company, new owners of Steinway & Sons, must decide whether or not Steinway should continue to focus on its high-end, niche strategy of being the preeminent maker of high quality vertical and grand pianos or do a 360 and take on a bold and aggressive approach. For several years now, Steinway’s brand and reputation had suffered due the popularity of electronic keyboards, expansion of their dealer network and some modernization methods to the manufacturing of the product. As a result, poor executive management and poor customer service ensued, potentially damaging the Steinway brand irreparably. Experienced C-Level executives must be appointed to help guide the organization in the proper direction. Distribution channels must be reexamined to determine if there is an opportunity for expansion into new markets domestically and internationally. Promote the uniqueness in sound of each Steinway piano by leveraging existing relationships with current professional musicians, major music schools and conservatories and aggressively seek to forge relationships with current professional musicians; devise a strategy to convert those affiliated with competitors (i.e. Yamaha). Expand the Concert and Artist program to include retail, hospitality and entertainment properties. Create partnership tie-ins and product placement opportunities for motion pictures, television, music videos and nationwide retail and hotel chains like Nordstrom and Ritz Carlton. The new ownership must immediately reestablish credibility and the mission of the Steinway brand. A brand strategy consisting of a complete domestic brand re-launch. The mission and the vision of Steinway and Sons under the Selmer Company must be communicated and adopted from all persons affiliated with the organization, from the production floor to the boardroom floor. The Steinway brand cannot be lumped in with the other musical instruments that fall under the Selmer Company umbrella. Much of this can be