Our Trade-in/Trade-up Policy

Students on Fractional Cellos Purchased Originally from LW Cellos

Young students playing on fractional-sized cellos purchased originally from us will are eligible to receive up to 100% trade-in value for their instruments until they reach their final, adult cello size. You will typically get full credit of the outfit's purchase price, less:

$300 for the used case
$80 for the bow (which will need to be cleaned and re-haired).
$xxx for new strings comparable to the original string set (price depends on the strings).
If the cello is in a good state of preservation, it will retain 100% of its value.
If there is restoration needed beyond minor surface marks, we will discuss the cost deduction needed to refurbish the instrument to sellable condition.

Adults Who Originally Purchased a Cello from LW Cellos Wishing to Upgrade

The point of trading your cello in, and purchasing a new cello, is to get an upgrade in performance. If you purchased your cello from us, and it is still in good condition, we will most likely allow you to trade it in under the following conditions:

We will depreciate your trade-in 1.5% of your original purchase price per month (or partial month) of ownership, not more than 50% of the original price that you paid (depending on condition). (see example below)
We will also depreciate the case and bow if they are also being traded back with the cello as an outfit.
The cello that you are trading for must cost at least 50% more than the purchase price of your trade. In other words, if your current cello cost $4000, you will have to upgrade to at least a $6000 cello for your trade to be valid.
If your cello needs work for us to put it into our inventory, ie. new strings, open seams, cracks, or other necessary repairs, we will deduct this from the amount we will give you in trade.
We allow this trade-in policy for a total of 2 trades. By then, you should be at your final, high-performance cello!
- Example - Adult Sizes -You purchased a full size (if you are a very small adult this might be a 7/8 or 3/4, ... students or adults past high school are NOT eligible for our fractional cello policy) cello 24 months ago for $5,000 and want to trade it in for a more expensive cello. You may receive $3,200 in trade-in credit ($5000 x 1.5% = $75. $75/mo of depreciation x 24 months of ownership = $1,800 depreciation. $5,000 purchase price minus $1,800 = $3,200 credit (less any refurbishment, or case depreciation.) You would need to select a new cello that costs at least $7,500.

Your Location

If you must ship the trade back to us, any and all shipping charges will be covered by you. if you are located outside of the U.S. at the time of the trade, you must ship your cello to us from within the U.S. as we don't want to deal with any duty, taxes, or other sorts of import fees.

Cellos NOT Originally Purchased from LW Cellos

If you purchased your cello elsewhere, it is doubtful that we will take it in trade due to the fact that Linda personally curates all of the cellos that we sell, therefore, we know if you bought your cello from us that we hand-picked it originally. Our acceptance of your cello on trade will depend on many things, including; our need for that instrument in our inventory, condition of the instrument, value of the instrument, maker, age, size, etc. Please get in touch with us before you bring your cello in expecting us to take it in on trade.

Cellos on Consignment

Consignment cellos are not eligible to be traded for. In other words, if you purchased a cello from me previously, and see a consignment cello that you like, you can't trade yours for it. I'm sorry, but since I am selling the cello for someone else, I don't own it, therefore can't honor trades against it.