Midwich Group, global AV distributor, has announced the acquisition of The Farm, the West Coast-based manufacturers’ representative and technical services provider. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, The Farm will join forces with the Midwich Group’s U.S. operation, Starin Marketing, to expand its geographical footprint and enhance its current levels of customer and manufacturer support.
“Increased opportunity and better support aren’t all our customers and manufacturer partners will gain,” says John Hood, CEO and president of The Farm. “Backed by the resources of Midwich, we’ll finally be able to invest in building and deepening our services — starting with our current partners Q-SYS and Visionary Solutions. Serving the finest AV manufacturers and technology providers is in our DNA. We’ve built a team of experts, no generalists. Instead of turning down work because of resource shortages, we’ll be able to expand to meet demand.”
Executives of Midwich Group and Starin Marketing pose with The Farm team. Photo courtesy of Kelly Perkins of The Farm.
“More good news: None of this comes at the cost of losing who we are,” continues Hood. “The Farm’s DNA — including our character, attitude and unique perspective — remain. Neither I nor any other Farm team members are going anywhere. Your same account manager, customer service expert and programmer will all still be here for you — plus the power of an international distribution market leader. We’ll only grow.”
Speaking on this new development, Starin’s CEO, Bobby Swartz, remarks, “For Starin partners, this reaffirms our promise and direction to continue to build a high-value and service-focused organization. Specialization in specific services and technologies allows us to bring an ease of business to our customers and vendor partners, and we continue to drive forward with the addition of the great people at The Farm.”
“We are delighted to welcome John and his team to the Midwich Group,” adds Thomas Sumner, chief strategy officer and North American CEO. “John has built a highly skilled team with a real customer focus. His decision to join us builds on our strategy of focusing on specialism. We look forward to John and team evolving their partnership with Starin, further strengthening the support we can provide our customers across the U.S.”
Editor’s note: This story is still in development. Check back to read an upcoming exclusive interview with The Farm’s John Hood!
