The return of technical distribution in AV & why it matters more than ever

Managing director Nick Pidgeon shares his thoughts on why technical AV distribution is crucial to the future of our industry.

Over the years, we’ve seen a pattern, specialist AV distributors emerge with strong technical credentials, only to be acquired by broad line businesses. And time after time, the technical focus fades. 

The depth that once created real value for resellers/integrators and end-users is replaced with volume sales and box-shifting.

Why? Because technical distribution isn’t just about products. It’s equally about people and processes that will often define the outcome of the delivery. It’s about providing true support across the full lifecycle of a system, whether that’s integrating into an existing project or delivering a turnkey solution.

To me, technical distribution means having the capability to understand a brief, help shape a solution, support design and specification, and be present through installation and aftercare. That requires a team of people with real-world and varied expertise, not just a warehouse full of SKUs.

I believe we’re seeing a resurgence of this approach with a growing number of distributors focussing on audio solutions, digital signage, and of course, companies like Visualization, who focus on dvLED, projection, LCD, and all the peripheral glue of the system like signal management, video processing, audio and networking.

The AV industry doesn’t just need more products. It needs more partnership. And that’s where true technical distribution proves its value.