In September 1989, Luke Furr (then VP of Lake Systems), was standing on a beach in Florida when Sony called. They were changing their ‘go to’ market and wanted to start using reps. “Do you know anyone?” they asked. Without hesitation he said, “What about me?” The rest is history.
Shoreview Distribution founder Luke Furr & National Sales Manager Rory Caponigro
Today Furr is celebrating the 25th anniversary of his Shoreview Distribution national sales organization. A key to his success has been working with Sony Electronics in the U.S. as a select distributor for all its professional audio and video products. “Sony was our first client,” Furr said. “We’ve grown our roster to include a number of major manufacturers, but maintaining our relationship with Sony for all these years is a special source of pride."
- Shoreview’s positive trajectory has been marked by productive relationships with Revolabs, JVC, Pioneer, Toshiba, Tascam, Ricoh USA, Crane and many other stellar brands. The firm’s nationwide sales team constantly solidifies the success of those alliances. A home office staffed by career employees with an average 12+ years on the job, provides indispensable backup support. “We have always focused on application oriented sales, information, competitive pricing and, on delivering the gear in a timely fashion,” Furr stated. “Our field reps are skilled educators and trainers who know the products because they use them. We all share a genuine sense of family with our clients and our manufacturers.”
- Starting off with the traditional "garage-based business," Furr’s early sales focused on the recording and performing gear he used in his music career. His ability to grasp the functionality and value of a rapidly expanding arsenal of new products proved a major asset. “As manufacturer R&D teams began turning out innovative digital gear and ‘must have’ new tools, we found ourselves in the midst of a technology explosion,” Furr said. “Simultaneously, a number of savvy young men with an aptitude for using, explaining, and selling this next-generation equipment gravitated towards us. We built a great sales team!”
- John Kaloukian, vice president of sales, Professional Solutions of America, Sony Electronics remarked, “Shoreview has been a select distributor for Sony’s professional audio and video products for 25 years. The fact they are in the select group of distributors we work with means that we chose them for very specific reasons. They are very knowledgeable of Sony’s product lines. Basically, they are a turn-key, one stop shopping resource for resellers.
- “Shoreview’s strength is that they can act quickly to meet the market’s needs,” Kaloukian concluded. “They are highly responsive, flexible, and able to adapt easily to customers’ evolving requirements. For example, special terms or custom packing, and, they get the job done with minimal red tape. They are one of our closest links to the market.”
