Experienced Industry Professional Joins AVAD-Canada
Van Nuys, Calif. — October 2, 2007 –AVAD LLC, America’s leading distributor of custom home electronics, announced today the appointment of Scot Kerek to the position of sales manager for eastern Canada. With over twenty years of experience in the audio/video industry and an excellent command of the Canadian custom installation market, Kerek brings a wealth of knowledge to help ensure the success of AVAD-Canada, which is opening the doors of its Toronto facility in November 2007.
“Scot Kerek brings tremendous knowledge and Canadian industry experience to AVAD,” said Bob Gartland, president of AVAD, LLC. “With his expertise in the Canadian market, we are confident that he will help us position the company for great growth and success in our new venture in Canada.”
“I am very excited to be involved with AVAD,” said Kerek. “AVAD will provide leadership in Canada for the custom installation business, and the combination of training and support they offer to AVAD customers is fantastic. I think the timing is perfect for AVAD to enter the Canadian market.”
As sales manager for eastern Canada, Kerek will be the primary sales contact for the company in the Canadian marketplace and will also work in selecting AVAD’s business partners. Prior to joining AVAD, Kerek was with Lenbrook Industries Ltd., an Ontario-based international distributor and manufacturer of premium electronics, for almost 20 years. His experience there included everything from technical services to sales, and his last position was director of sales — AV Division.
Unlike other CI distributors in Canada, AVAD brings the industry’s most respected and recognized brands, in-depth product and category training, the widest selection in various disciplines (audio, video, lighting controls, home automation and more) and an expert sales staff to give live integration, system design, application and technical support.
AVAD’s Toronto location is a 26,728-square foot facility, which will include approximately 6,000 square feet of showroom space. It will house a classroom training facility, multiple display areas, a dedicated theater room to display AVAD’s latest technologies and products and ample warehouse space — all advantages that are AVAD’s trademark. These are attributes that made AVAD the number one choice for custom installers across the United States. The same is expected for Canada.
Another focal point of AVAD’s new Toronto facility is the accessibility it will provide to dealers. Local dealers will have a convenient pick-up area, and AVAD will also be able to ship products to dealers in the eastern Canadian markets from there.
AVAD’s Toronto facility is located at 205 Courtney Park Drive, Suite 103 in Mississauga, Ontario. For more information, visit www.avadcanada.ca.
In Brief: Release Summary
• Scot Kerek has joined AVAD as sales manager for eastern Canada.
• In his new position, Kerek will be responsible for lead generation in Canada through AVAD. He will be the primary sales contact for the company in the Canadian marketplace and will also work in selecting AVAD’s business partners.
• Kerek’s 20 years of industry experience includes everything from technical services to sales, and his last position was director of sales — AV Division at Lenbrook Industries Ltd.
• AVAD will open its first Canada location in Toronto in November 2007.
About AVAD, LLC
AVAD, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ingram Micro, Inc., is the most complete home integration solutions provider in North America, now expanding to Canada. Its in-depth technology offering of the most trusted brands and progressive continuing education programs provide all the support necessary to design and implement complete home electronic systems solutions. AVAD stocks products for home theater, lighting controls, distributed audio/video, central vacuum, and more. AVAD also provides just-in-time delivery from each of its 37 locations nationwide.
AVAD is dedicated to dealer education, training and skill advancement, as evidenced by AVAD University’s over 450 online and classroom continuing education classes held each year.
By partnering with CEDIA for key industry training courses such as Installer Level I and II Certification, Designer Boot Camps and Home Theater Workshops, AVAD is unparalleled in its commitment to the betterment of the industry and the dealer’s bottom line.
AVAD exemplifies this concept with the Dealer to Builder (D2B) program, which links highly-trained and qualified members of its 9,000+ dealer corps with homebuilders across the United States to outfit new homes with in-demand, cutting-edge electronic systems.
Product lines that AVAD distributes and supports include: Acme Brackets, APC, Aprilaire, Artison, Atlantic Technology, Belden, Bose, Carlon ChannelPlus, Chief, Coleman Cable, H-P Products/Dirt Devil Central Vacuum Systems, D-Link, Draper, Dymo/RhinoPRO, Encore!, Escient, Fujitsu, Gefen, Goo Systems-Visual Reality, Inc., Harman Kardon, InFocus ScreenPlay, iPort, JVC Professional Products Company, Key Digital, Labor Saving Devices, Lutron, Marantz, Middle Atlantic Products, Inc., Midlite, MuxLab, NetStreams, Niles Audio, Niveus Media, OmniMount, OnQ Technologies, OpenHouse, Optoma, Panamax, Panasonic Phones, Peerless, Philips, Polk Audio, PROconnect, ProFlex, RTI, Rockustics, Samsung, Sharp, SharpVision, Spaun USA, Terk, Toshiba, Universal Remote Control, Velodyne and more.
In July 2005, AVAD was acquired by Ingram Micro, Inc., making its parent company the leading distributor for solution providers and custom integrators serving the fast-growing consumer electronics and home automation markets in the United States.
For more information about AVAD, visit www.avad.com.
