Almo Launches Pro A/V Division
By John Laposky -- TWICE, 6/17/2009
Philadelphia — Almo, a leading distributor of consumer electronics and appliances, announced today that it is launching a new value-added professional audio/visual distribution division.
The new division will provide commercial- and consumer-grade products, such as LCD TVs, projectors, specialty displays, video conferencing, audio, mounting solutions, and a host of other products designed for professional A/V integrators and dealers.
The new division will be led by Sam Taylor who has been appointed as executive VP and COO. Taylor has been in the pro A/V industry for nearly 25 years, most recently with Electrograph Systems where he served as president for 15 years.
Warren Chaiken, president and COO of Almo, said, “We’ve been in the consumer electronics business for over 30 years. Expanding into the pro A/V space is a logical extension of our core distribution business. However, we recognized that the customers in the professional space have unique needs. We wanted an experienced leader to help us establish the division specifically for those integrators. We are delighted that Sam has joined us to bring the expertise needed to build the business not as a hybrid of the consumer division, but created specifically for the pro A/V customer.”
Taylor commented: “Almo has a rich 63-year history and prides itself as distributor with operational excellence, a trusted reputation and has always maintained a personal touch with all its customers. There is a void right now in the pro A/V space for a strong value-added distributor and Almo is positioned to take the lead.”
Taylor continued: “Our initial focus will be bringing on new commercial product lines, getting the balance of the sales team on board and then positioning ourselves to be a value-added partner for pro A/V integrators.”
The new division will add approximately 25 employees in sales, marketing and product planning.
The new sales team will all be InfoComm-trained and many CTS-certified, bringing a high-level consultative approach to their reseller partners, Chaikin said.
The anticipated launch date for the new business unit is July 1.
