Allen & Heath and Calrec have joined the DiGiCo family in a new professional audio group.
Retaining their skills, customer relationships and the identities of each brand, the alliance will be headed by James Gordon as CEO, supported by ‘a strong and talented management from across the new group’.
The announcement follows 18 months’ consultation between the DiGiCo team and Electra Partners: ‘We have bold plans for the group but it is imperative that each company maintains its own independence and style. None of these brands needs to trade off each other’s technology or reputation,’ Gordon says.
‘These are three great companies and all the brands currently in the group have enviable reputations for technology, audio quality, reliability and perhaps, most importantly, customer focus and care. The strategy is to share technology and resource across the group and allow some interconnectivity across the product lines. The combined R&D teams are about to enter a new world of possibilities and we intend to take full advantage of their resource, passion and experience. It’s an amazing opportunity for us, and maybe the whole British pro audio industry.’
‘The creation of the group with DiGiCo and their management is an impressive combination,’ says Allen & Heath MD, Glenn Rogers. ‘It will certainly add new momentum to what Allen & Heath and Calrec had already planned for the future.’
‘This formation gives Calrec new opportunities for swifter development of a host of ideas we have been wanting to bring to the market,’ adds Calrec Sales & Marketing Director, Henry Goodman. ‘We will have a vast pool of engineers to share new ideas for the industry and target them specifically to each brand’s needs. Customers can expect us to maintain and in some areas improve our very high levels of support and service.’
The complexity of the venture required the support of two of London’s top private equity houses. For the first time, Electra Partners and ISIS have pooled resources to support the management with this ambitious vision for the future of UK pro audio.
‘DiGiCo augments our existing investment in the professional audio sector,’ says Charles Elkington, Investment Partner at Electra Partners. ‘We have worked hard over the last 18 months to bring together these three successful businesses. We look forward to working with James Gordon and his team to grow the group, while also preserving the distinctive brand identity and excellent customer relationships of each business.’
