By John Borns
In June 2019 the AV world descended upon Orlando, FL for AVIXA’s annual InfoComm Show. This year, Almo Pro A/V celebrated its 10th birthday as an AV distributor. I was there for the celebration as the newest member of Almo’s Business Development Team, experiencing my first InfoComm in Almo Blue. This was my 6th time attending Infocomm, but the previous five had been on the manufacturing side. Here are some of my observations from this year’s show:
1. What’s a Display Anymore?
The first thing I noticed was that my understanding of a “display” needs to be readjusted. Video walls and panoramic projector surfaces aren’t brand new ideas, but I had never seen so many creative ways to turn a wall into a stunning visual experience. As bezels disappear and pixels become more and more impossible to discern, pretty much any surface can be re-imagined as a way of delivering content, in ways that I wouldn’t have thought possible only five years ago.
2. It’s Hard Not to Be Impressed with Almo Pro AV’s History
While on the manufacturing side, I had taken Almo for granted as a constant staple of the industry. I’d always known Almo as one of my biggest customers and a vital part of the AV channel. At the 10-year anniversary cake-cutting event, I listened to Sam Taylor tell the story of Almo’s humble beginnings in the industry. To hear him fondly recall walking around the show trying to convince some of the biggest players in AV to let them carry their products as an upstart was very moving. Almo was just awarded the title of “2019 rAVe Reader’s Choice Best AV Distributor” again this year – for the eighth year in a row! To think that Almo Pro A/V went from nothing to a $500M global distribution business in just a decade is hard to believe. I’m proud to be a part of this team!
3. The Biggest Booth at the Show Was… Legrand?
Legrand, a relatively new player in the AV world, has been slowly and quietly building an impressive portfolio of leading brands in the AV infrastructure world. It was pretty much the first booth you saw when you walked in the door and its size and scope were impossible to ignore. It’s difficult not to look at their presence at this year’s show as a bit of a statement of their arrival as a new player in the market, and; some sort of evolution from their background as a collection of individual independent brands.
So, that’s my take on this year’s InfoComm Show. What did you think? Post a comment below and have an Almo Pro A/V 10-year anniversary gift sent to you!
