Electrograph Systems Acquires Activelight and Cinelight from Powder Hill Group
Feb 22, 2006 5:06 PM
Electrograph Systems, Inc., a leading national value-added distributor of display technology solutions to the professional, commercial and high-end consumer markets, today announced that it has acquired ActiveLight and CineLight, both based in Poulsbo, Washington, from Powder Hill Group. The acquisition is Electrograph’s first since it was acquired in August 2005 by Caxton-Iseman Capital, Inc. in partnership with Alan Marc Smith, the company’s Chief Executive Officer, and Sam Taylor, its President. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
ActiveLight is a leading value-added distributor of display technology solutions and projectors to the professional, commercial and high-end consumer markets. CineLight is a leading, value-added distributor of advanced display technology products and accessories to home theater designers and resellers. Electrograph expects that the acquisition of ActiveLight and CineLight will significantly enhance its size and scope, while solidifying its market presence, specifically on the West Coast.
Russell Short, Vice President and General Manager of CineLight, will remain with the company and assume a senior-level role within Electrograph’s operations. Herb Myers, founder of both ActiveLight and CineLight, will continue to lead The Powder Hill Group, Boxlight and The Digital Signage Group, as well as various real estate interests. Brad Gleeson, also a founder of ActiveLight and CineLight, will pursue other business interests.
Mr. Smith said: “Electrograph offers the most comprehensive product selection of any value-added display distributor, and is the only one to operate a nationwide field sales and service network. The acquisition of ActiveLight and CineLight is a great addition for Electrograph as we look to strengthen our position in key geographic markets and continue to build out our product portfolio in order to capitalize on the huge demand for high-end displays and value-added solutions. We are impressed with the successful track records of ActiveLight and CineLight, and in particular, the great customer service their employees provide. We look forward to working with Russ Short and the ActiveLight and CineLight teams, with the goal of continuing to strengthen our position as a nationwide value-added display solutions distributor.
“Herb Myers and Brad Gleeson have done an extraordinary job building these two outstanding businesses. We thank them for their cooperation during the transaction process and wish them luck in the future,” Mr. Smith concluded.
Mr. Myers said: “Brad and I have derived great personal satisfaction from the growth and success of ActiveLight and CineLight over the years. After a great deal of serious thought, we decided that this is the right time for new owners to take the businesses through the next stage of development. During the past several months we have come to know Alan Marc Smith, Sam Taylor and their team, and believe that Electrograph is the ideal partner for ActiveLight and CineLight. We are grateful to our employees, customers and business partners for their support and friendship over the years and wish them all the best as part of Electrograph.”
Electrograph President, Sam Taylor, commented: “ActiveLight and CineLight customers should expect to receive the same high caliber of service they have come to expect, now with nationally extended resources from Electrograph including our factory-authorized service center, a greater breadth of product lines, and access to more product inventory. It’s all about combining the best practices of both companies to make a stronger, value-added distribution company to meet our customer’s growing needs.”
The company plans to augment is existing sales force though adding the talent from ActiveLight and CineLight and plans to extend its ICIA sales training to this team. In addition, ActiveLight’s expertise in the digital signage market will become a key strategic growth area for the company.
“While exploring this opportunity with ActiveLight and CineLight, we discovered that our customer overlap was marginal. So we anticipate that an entire new set of customers will benefit from this partnership and the synergies we have to offer,” Mr. Taylor concluded.
Tim Wheeler, Vice President of Technology & Design with NewGround Retail Media of St. Louis, Missouri commented: “ActiveLight has been an outstanding partner for us, providing industry knowledge and that extra attention to detail. We view this acquisition as a win-win situation. We keep the service level we’ve come to expect and gain access to more inventory, more products and the combined expertise of both companies.” Mr. Wheeler added: “We’re especially excited about the added peripheral solutions, such as Electrograph’s EZ Cat powered by Magenta. Now we will have a single source provider and can deliver more cost-effective solutions to our clients.” NewGround Retail Media is a leading integrator of digital signage solutions to the financial services industry.
Randy Penny, Director of Operations with Wire One of King of Prussia, Pennsylvania said, “Over the years we’ve worked with both ActiveLight and Electrograph. Both
organizations have great expertise and I believe the combined companies will provide a
powerful line-up of products and services for us to offer our customers.” Wire One is a leading provider of end-to-end video conferencing solutions throughout the U.S. and Europe.
For more information, visit www.electrograph.com.
