Tier One Electronics, the lifestyle-focused technology company – and the owner of the Audiomotion range – has announced that it has relocated its head office and warehousing facilities in Durban to Pretoria. Tier One is also the exclusive distributors of the Rosen Entertainment and Audiovox ranges.
This was confirmed by Stephen Easton, founder and CEO of Tier One. Speaking from Tier One’s UK offices, Easton says the relocation – which is now complete – was a “necessary step” as the lion’s share of the company’s revenue comes from the Gauteng region.
“Tier One has a Durban heritage, but, despite this, the relocation to Gauteng was a necessity as we are in the process of substantially expanding our sales force in that region. Despite the relocation to Gauteng, we have maintained an office in KwaZulu-Natal, which is headed up by Andre Botha.”
He confirmed the head office and “core warehousing” now reside in Pretoria.
Tier One also has an exclusive agreement with a company in Cape Town, headed by Erwin Rencken, who has the rights to distribute Tier One products.
Three years ago Tier One conducted a management buyout from listed technology company, Mustek, of which Easton was director.
Since the buyout the company has refocused its product range and created – and trademarked- its own product line, Audiomotion.
The company also recently launched in the UK based on certain supply agreements and the fact that it has received trademark acceptance for its Audiomotion range in the European Union.
“Going forward, the UK will prove to be a very large market for Tier One and we have plans to expand our activities into the rest of the European Union. South Africa, however, will remain an important market and we will also be looking to expand Tier One South Africa’s footprint via ventures in the rest of Africa,” says Easton.
Easton says the company’s main brand is Audiomotion, a fast-emerging range that led to the formation of the company’s speaker division. The speaker range includes specialised product lines, such as wireless light bulb speaker systems; portable vibration speakers; iPad/tablet speakers; and a wide range of Bluetooth products – all focused around lifestyle.
Since the launch of the speaker division and the growing success of Audiomotion, other product ranges have been added, including its own range for the automotive industry – a market where Tier One has a strong heritage.
With the refocusing and repositioning of the company Hubert Mimm has been appointed to head up the UK offices, while Easton will remain on as CEO, overseeing the South African and UK operations. Horst Flade has been appointed a director of Tier One South Africa.
Tier One’s UK director, Hubert Mimm, says the investment in the company’s UK offices had been “substantial”.
He says Audiomotion is a fast-growing brand and is backed up by its relationships and agreements it has with key design vendor partners.
While the Rosen and Audiovox ranges will not be launched in the UK by Tier One, they will still form a sizeable chunk of the company’s revenue in South Africa. Rosen is a premier manufacturer and supplier of mobile video entertainment systems, while Audiovox is one of the oldest manufacturers of automotive and consumer products.
Tier One Electronics is the exclusive distributor for both companies in southern Africa.
Commenting further, Mimm says Tier One UK is starting off from a “zero one start-up base” and will be focused on growing organically over the next few years.
“We are well-positioned in the UK market with our Audiomotion range and expect to grow rapidly, albeit off a zero base, over the next few years – as well as moving into the rest of Europe.”
This was confirmed by Stephen Easton, founder and CEO of Tier One. Speaking from Tier One’s UK offices, Easton says the relocation – which is now complete – was a “necessary step” as the lion’s share of the company’s revenue comes from the Gauteng region.
“Tier One has a Durban heritage, but, despite this, the relocation to Gauteng was a necessity as we are in the process of substantially expanding our sales force in that region. Despite the relocation to Gauteng, we have maintained an office in KwaZulu-Natal, which is headed up by Andre Botha.”
He confirmed the head office and “core warehousing” now reside in Pretoria.
Tier One also has an exclusive agreement with a company in Cape Town, headed by Erwin Rencken, who has the rights to distribute Tier One products.
Three years ago Tier One conducted a management buyout from listed technology company, Mustek, of which Easton was director.
Since the buyout the company has refocused its product range and created – and trademarked- its own product line, Audiomotion.
The company also recently launched in the UK based on certain supply agreements and the fact that it has received trademark acceptance for its Audiomotion range in the European Union.
“Going forward, the UK will prove to be a very large market for Tier One and we have plans to expand our activities into the rest of the European Union. South Africa, however, will remain an important market and we will also be looking to expand Tier One South Africa’s footprint via ventures in the rest of Africa,” says Easton.
Easton says the company’s main brand is Audiomotion, a fast-emerging range that led to the formation of the company’s speaker division. The speaker range includes specialised product lines, such as wireless light bulb speaker systems; portable vibration speakers; iPad/tablet speakers; and a wide range of Bluetooth products – all focused around lifestyle.
Since the launch of the speaker division and the growing success of Audiomotion, other product ranges have been added, including its own range for the automotive industry – a market where Tier One has a strong heritage.
With the refocusing and repositioning of the company Hubert Mimm has been appointed to head up the UK offices, while Easton will remain on as CEO, overseeing the South African and UK operations. Horst Flade has been appointed a director of Tier One South Africa.
Tier One’s UK director, Hubert Mimm, says the investment in the company’s UK offices had been “substantial”.
He says Audiomotion is a fast-growing brand and is backed up by its relationships and agreements it has with key design vendor partners.
While the Rosen and Audiovox ranges will not be launched in the UK by Tier One, they will still form a sizeable chunk of the company’s revenue in South Africa. Rosen is a premier manufacturer and supplier of mobile video entertainment systems, while Audiovox is one of the oldest manufacturers of automotive and consumer products.
Tier One Electronics is the exclusive distributor for both companies in southern Africa.
Commenting further, Mimm says Tier One UK is starting off from a “zero one start-up base” and will be focused on growing organically over the next few years.
“We are well-positioned in the UK market with our Audiomotion range and expect to grow rapidly, albeit off a zero base, over the next few years – as well as moving into the rest of Europe.”
