AudioQuest announced today that it has added two new members to its North American sales management team. These new sales professionals are David Penrod and Krista Haughey.
Brands
Gibson, After Light Pruning, Plans Global Layoffs
Hundreds of Employees Facing Pink Slips
Gibson Brands, a major provider of musical instrument and consumer electronics products, is in the midst of a widely reported liquidity crisis. With more than $500 million dollars in notes coming due late this summer, the company is seeking a knight in shining armor to ride in on a white horse with a big bag of money to refinance the company’s crushing debt.
To make the company appear attractive to a lender or investor, at the end of February the company sold off its shuttered Cakewalk division and laid off about 15 employees from its famous Custom Shop. Now we learn the company is planning more substantial layoffs across the board.
See more on this latest development at Gibson… [Read more…] about Gibson, After Light Pruning, Plans Global Layoffs
Amazon Invests in Another Smart Home Startup
Popular Executive Leaves the Company
Just one week after Amazon made a widely reported purchase of video doorbell maker Ring (for a reported eye-popping $1 billion), we learn that it has made another investment into the smart home space, taking a share of smart thermostat maker Ecobee. Although this was an investment made through their Amazon Alexa Fund and not an outright acquisition, it seems pretty clear that Amazon is getting very serious about the smart home business.
See more on this unexpected development from Amazon… [Read more…] about Amazon Invests in Another Smart Home Startup
In Battle with Sonos, D&M Takes Yet Another Blow
Sonos Seeks Permanent Injunction Against Infringing Products
The battle rages on between D&M Holdings and Sonos over the patent infringement lawsuit brought by Sonos in 2014 against the HEOS by Denon line, and in which Sonos won the first set of their claims in a bellwether trial that concluded this past December. In retaliation for the Sonos lawsuit, D&M Holdings filed a countersuit that is now heating up, and in which they just lost a major decision from Judge Richard G. Andrews.
See more on D&M’s loss in this ongoing matter… [Read more…] about In Battle with Sonos, D&M Takes Yet Another Blow
CEO Says Gibson Will Dump Brands
Financials Show Sales & Profits Continue to Slide
Gibson Brands CEO Henry Juszkiewicz continues to profess confidence that the company will be able to successfully refinance their over $500 million debt before a mid-year maturation comes due. Telling the Nashville Post that the company is going through a little “spring cleaning,” Juszkiewicz says the company already dropped their Cakewalk music software group, and other brands in their portfolio are next to go. But a financial report to bondholders shows continued deterioration of both sales and profits, suggesting that simply pruning a few brands from the portfolio may not be enough to attract new investors or lenders.
See more on the dire situation at Gibson Brands… [Read more…] about CEO Says Gibson Will Dump Brands
Restructure Done, Sony Sets Sights Higher – on Uber
We learned today from multiple media reports out of Japan that Sony Corp. is working on building a joint venture with at least six taxi operators in Japan this Spring. The goal comes in the wake of Uber Technologies Inc. saying that it seeks to improve its success in Japan through a partnership with another taxi company there.
Sony, jumping into the ride-hailing business?… [Read more…] about Restructure Done, Sony Sets Sights Higher – on Uber
Gibson CEO Turns to PR to Stop Crashing Reputation
Company Rehires CFO With Debt Deadline Fast Approaching
As the music world media continues to trumpet the news of the potential impending collapse of Gibson Brands, noting large outstanding debts and the exit of the company’s CFO, Gibson CEO Henry Juszkiewicz launches a PR blitz to try and stem the collapse of the company’s reputation. It is a critical time for Juszkiewicz, as he is engaged in trying to refinance the company whose huge debt portfolio of over $500 million comes due in just a few short months. To try and stem the tide, Gibson released a couple of press releases last week claiming, in essence and improbably, that things are just fine.
Oh and Gibson Brands hired a CFO…or rather, re-hired a former CFO… [Read more…] about Gibson CEO Turns to PR to Stop Crashing Reputation
Gibson Makes Coupon Payment; CFO is Out
Debt Holders Increasingly Anticipate Bankruptcy Filing
Gibson Brands announced at the end of last week that it had successfully completed a $16.6 million coupon payment to holders of its $375 million 8.875% senior secured notes due 2018. This news, a seemingly positive development for the company, really only means that they get to march forward towards their mid-year debt maturities – the big event. But, for the moment at least, they are stayin’ alive.
However, Gibson’s CFO has left the company… [Read more…] about Gibson Makes Coupon Payment; CFO is Out
Old Pro Bryston Partners with Rookie StormAudio
In sort of a cross-technology sharing agreement, Bryston says it has partnered with relative newcomer StormAudio to create new products that will embody shared technologies from the two premium companies. According to the announcement, the agreement will enable “both companies to leverage their respective design and manufacturing expertise in an array of new product offerings.”
See more on this interesting Bryston – StormAudio partnership… [Read more…] about Old Pro Bryston Partners with Rookie StormAudio
So How is Amazon Go…er…Going?
Unless you live under a rock, you most likely have heard about Amazon Go, the experimental grocery store that uses technology to allow shoppers to bypass the checkout counter and simply walk out the door with their purchases. Within minutes of leaving, they receive an email of the items they left with, and the receipt with the charges to a card of their (previously registered) choice. The idea is to eliminate a signficant pain point – standing in line for the sometimes time-consuming checkout process.
