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B&H Photo Pays $3.2M to Settle Federal Charges

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DOL and B&H Photo logosBREAKING NEWS

Just over a year ago, we told you about the Federal government bringing charges against popular retailer B&H Foto & Electronics Corp., better known as B&H Photo Video, alleging discrimination, bias, and harassment of workers at its Brooklyn Navy Yard warehouse. Filed by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, the action by the government told a seamy tale of material mistreatment of certain employees at the company, a Federal contractor subject to specific rules governing treatment of workers.

See more on the costly conclusion of the matter by B&H… [Read more…] about B&H Photo Pays $3.2M to Settle Federal Charges

Huge Management Transition at Lenbrook; End of an Era

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Lenbrook logoLenbrook International announced this week a major transition in their management team in what it said was a carefully thought-out “succession plan.” Lenbrook, parent company to the Bluesound, NAD, and PSB brands, will restructure their senior management team in the wake of a form of retirement of two of its most prominent leaders – Lenbrook Americas President & CEO Dean Miller; and Chief Brand Officer John Banks. It is not an overstatement to call this the end of one era and the beginning of a new one.

See more on this change at Lenbrook… [Read more…] about Huge Management Transition at Lenbrook; End of an Era

Jeannette Howe Joins Transformative Engineering as VP of Sales

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BREAKING NEWS

Transformative Engineering logoSpecialty design and engineering firm Transformative Engineering has appointed Jeannette Howe to the newly created role of Vice President of Sales. The company notes that Howe’s background, including stints at “National Buying Groups, Trade Associations, and major retailers,” uniquely qualifies her for this role, which is an expansion of their existing sales team.

See more on this new appointment at Transformative Engineering… [Read more…] about Jeannette Howe Joins Transformative Engineering as VP of Sales

Layoffs Hit Linear Subsidiary GTO Access Systems

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One Out of Every Three Employees to Lose Job

Nortek LogoGTO Access Systems LLC, a division of Linear LLC, itself part of Nortek, Inc. is planning to lay off fully 33% of its workforce, according to a report in the Tallahassee Democrat. The company says all layoffs should be completed by September 20th. This is the first significant layoff of any company associated with Nortek’s Security & Control Solutions segment of which we are aware.

Learn more about this significant layoff at GTO… [Read more…] about Layoffs Hit Linear Subsidiary GTO Access Systems

Are Amazon Geeks Geekier than Best Buy’s?

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Amazon Tests In-Home Installations

Best Buy store and Geek Squad truckRecode is reporting that Amazon is testing an installation service for smart home products in several key test markets – in direct competition with Best Buy’s Geek Squad. While these two giants battle over the rights to install smart home solutions into the home, where does this leave the independent integrator?

See more of what we learned from Recode… [Read more…] about Are Amazon Geeks Geekier than Best Buy’s?

New Mystery: Has Classé Closed?

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Fact? or Fiction?

Classe logoLess than a week after we reported that B&W Group President Doug Henderson had been summarily dismissed from the company he has been a key executive at for more than a decade, the rumor mill has fired up again with word that Classé has been closed down. Classé, like B&W Loudspeakers, is owned and distributed by B&W Group Ltd., a company recently acquired by EVA Automation. Multiple sources are suggesting that EVA owner Gideon Yu has decided to cease operations at the high end manufacturer of audio electronics.

See what we found out from B&W Group about Classé… [Read more…] about New Mystery: Has Classé Closed?

Reformulated Russound is Ready to Rumble

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Russound logoIn an extended meeting with Russound CEO Charlie Porritt and Vice President of Product Development Colin Clark, Strata-gee had the opportunity to learn details of the relatively dramatic developments at the company – many taking place behind the scenes – that management has undertaken over the last few years to better position the company for the future. Like a fighter with a new trainer who has put him on a strict diet and rigorous training regimen, Russound has emerged from an at-times painful multi-year process leaner and meaner…and ready to rumble.

Find out what we learned about the meaningful changes at Russound… [Read more…] about Reformulated Russound is Ready to Rumble

Bowers & Wilkins Notifies Dealers of Henderson’s Departure

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STORY UPDATE

B&W logoShortly after we published our BREAKING NEWS report on the Bowers & Wilkins dismissal of President Doug Henderson, we obtained a copy of an email that was apparently sent by the company to all B&W dealers explaining the situation. We’d like to be able to say this note answered all questions surrounding the upheaval their actions caused, but it raised as many questions as it answered.

See the email Bowers & Wilkins sent to their dealers on Henderson’s departure… [Read more…] about Bowers & Wilkins Notifies Dealers of Henderson’s Departure

Management Turnstile Turns Again at Thiel Audio

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BREAKING NEWS

Photo of Thoma Malatesta
Tom Malatesta

We learned this week that Thiel Audio (Thiel) has had another significant round of layoffs, including CEO Tom Malatesta, Chief Revenue Officer Stuart Levine, Director of Music Industry Relations Mark Mason (no relation to engineer Mark Mason who left much earlier), as well as two other lower level staff – who have all been let go within the last six-to-eight weeks. Furthermore, Chief Brand Officer Rebecca Abrahams, who led the launch of their Aurora live music performance and streaming studio, left the company in January of this year. No reason was given for any these separations and, true to form, Thiel has made no official public announcement regarding the dismissals.

See more on this new turn of the turnstile at Thiel… [Read more…] about Management Turnstile Turns Again at Thiel Audio

Gibson Brands Takes Control of Onkyo Corp.

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BREAKING NEWS

onkyologo

In a filing with Japan’s JASDAQ stock exchange, Onkyo revealed this week that at the end of June, major investor Gibson Brands became the largest shareholder for the first time since its relationship with the Osaka-based manufacturer of higher-quality electronics began in 2012. This small announcement portends a potentially significant change in the relationship between the two entities.

See more on this news out of Japan about Gibson and Onkyo… [Read more…] about Gibson Brands Takes Control of Onkyo Corp.