Public companies, whether they like it or not, are required by law to reveal a lot more about their finances and operations than they probably want to. They are owned by their stockholders and regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
An article in Pro Sound News about Harman International caught my eye over lunch. It was about Harman’s finances and it was as dry as toast. I read every word.
Why? Because Harman’s customers are my customers. This company that did almost $3 billion in sales last year sells some of the most desirable brands in pro audio. If you use equipment from makers like JBL, Souncraft, Crown, dbx or lots of other well known brands, you are a Harman customer.
Harman reported a decrease in pro audio sales of 26% in their last quarter. If your sound business is not strong enough right now to buy a new JBL line array, then you are probably not doing enough shows to need a lot of gaffers tape. If a new AKG wireless mic is not on your shopping list, then you probably aren’t going to be ordering ProCell batteries for it. No dbx processing gear means no Hosa patch cables.
Two years ago the stock price for a share of Harman International was $100.00. Yesterday, it closed at $37.00. That’s up almost 10% since the first of this month and a near doubling of the price since October of last year.
How goes Harman, so goes the pro sound industry. We wish them well.
GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape,Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Hosa and Entertainment One extension cords and OnStage Stand mic stands. Click here to sign up for our newsletter. Here’s a link to our new “How To” animation series.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.