Midwich Limited today announced the acquisition of the business and certain assets of Owl Visual Systems, an established UK distributor of high-end projectors, large format displays and associated control electronics.
Owl will operate as a standalone division of Midwich and its acquisition builds on Midwich’s position as the UK’s leading distributor of Audio Visual products, solutions and services.
Formed in 1990, Owl is based in East Sussex in the UK with annual sales around £15m and twenty staff. Owl’s loyal customer base is predominantly commercial Audio Visual resellers, integrators and event management companies, many of whom address the AV Leisure market.
This acquisition enhances Midwich’s reach in to the Audio Visual reseller channel and is complementary to the existing activities of both Midwich sister companies True Colours Distribution Limited, a distributor of technical AV solutions, and InVision UK Limited, a leading distributor of home technology products for custom installers.
"This is great news for our customers and manufacturer partners," said Shaun Marklew appointed to manage the Owl Visual Systems division. He continued, “I’ve worked at Owl for ten years but also had a spell with Midwich so I know the management team well and look forward to the opportunities this will bring. Owl will retain its own strong identity offering a range of Audio Visual products and services, however we'll have access to the financial, management and administrative resources of a larger groupâ€.
Commenting on the Owl acquisition, Nick Culley, Managing Director of Midwich, said: "We’ve respected and followed Owl’s progress for many years. Their products, services and customers are a very good fit for Midwich and we both share the same passion for delivering a first class service to our business partners. It’s great to have Shaun on board again and we already have some exciting plans for Owlâ€.
Owl’s vendor portfolio includes leading AV brands Sanyo, Philips, Mitsubishi and Panasonic. Owl also has a wide range of peripheral products, including DVDO video scalers, Screenline high-end projector screens and Abtus accessories. Along with a very strong stable of brands Owl’s other major key differentiator is the experience, product knowledge and technical expertise of its sales and support teams.
Stephen Fenby, the Finance Director of Midwich, who led the transaction, commented: “I welcome Owl to our group and look forward to developing a business development strategy with Shaun that will see us offer greater value to our customer and supplier partners. The combined skills and resources of our group companies put us in a very strong position to expand our business over the coming yearsâ€.