A year ago, Scottish-based loudspeaker manufacturer Tannoy merged with the Danish TC Group to form a holding company of eight individual businesses. The resulting group of companies, at the forefront of acoustics, digital, and electronic technologies, continues to maintain their individual brand identities while leveraging the diverse technical expertise within the group.
Tannoy has been assessing its product strategy for the next five to 10 years. The combined expertise of Tannoy and TC will allow them to take full advantage of the trend towards convergence of digital and acoustic technologies within the audio industry. Ever-increasing demand for superior audio solutions, especially within the AV sector of the install market, provides a major sales growth opportunity. The customer expects exceptional sound to accompany major advances in vision products. For example, loudspeaker designs that offer perfect matching to the listening environment through room equalization are high on the product development agenda.
Managing director of Tannoy Anders Fauerskov explains, "As new technologies now make it possible to provide real solutions to room optimization, the more natural and important it will be to our dealers and consumers to consider this aspect. What is great from our perspective is that we are capable of offering an extent of integration like no one else. We will be able to offer speaker packages not only with room EQ, but a wide variety of additional features."
Tannoy also intends to promote its enhanced wealth of unique technologies with a unified global image and brand message. One way to redefine the brand message and corporate image is by modernizing the logo.
Tannoy HQ marketing manager Doug Jeffrey says, "It’s been designed to reflect the concentric circles found in the WaveGuideTM of the Tannoy Dual ConcentricTM driver. We believe this logo device will ultimately become a recognized symbol of the brand. There’s much more to this than just a newly designed logo. The refreshment of the brand image will be seen across all forms of outbound communication, from corporate stationery and brochures through advertising, website, and exhibitions. More importantly, all other operations within the company from product design to PR will benefit from a unified and highly coherent brand strategy."
Tannoy will market itself as a leading innovator of premium audio solutions utilizing cutting-edge acoustic, electronic, and digital expertise. A new tag line is to be used to encompass the spirit of the Tannoy brand and technology: "hear--believe." In other news, Tannoy North America has expanded its market development efforts with the addition of veteran commercial marketing specialist, Costa Lakoumentas. He joins Tannoy with over 20 years of industry experience as a contractor, system designer, and marketing specialist. He spent more than four years at Mackie Designs Inc. in various roles including, most recently, corporate director of global installed products and markets. While at Mackie he played a key role in the development of analog, digital, and acoustic products marketed under the company's various brands.
"Costa brings a great balance of technical know-how and industry experience with a natural ability to communicate to our team," said Tannoy COO Bill Calma. "In his role of market development, a newly created position, Costa will help us communicate the benefits of Tannoy technologies, products, and the organization to our commerical market customers as well as our professional and residental customers."
Costa Lakoumentas can be reached at costa@tannoyna.com.