SIGNALS
By Andrew King
Redefining Distribution Over the Decades
SFM Celebrating 40 Years of Business in 2018
QSC TOUCHMIX MIXERS AT EXPO-SCENE 2018
SFM’S PRO AUDIO TEAM: (L-R) FRANCO CARUSO, BRAND MANAGER; ELIE BELLAMA, MARKET DEVELOPMENT
SPECIALIST, BROADCAST & OEM; LUISA CABRITA, BRAND MANAGER; CAITLIN DOHERTY, MANAGER, BRAND
MANAGEMENT; MIKE CALO, BRAND MANAGER; JESSICA SELIN, MARKETING PROJECT MANAGER; CHRIS DE SÁ,
ASSISTANT BRAND MANAGER; JACINTHE PAYANT, MARKETING PROJECT MANAGER
When Sol Fleising formally incorporated SF
Marketing, his eponymous sales agency, in 1978, it
was a one-man operation with a corporate head-
quarters that also happened to be its namesake’s
house.
Now, 40 years later, SFM occupies an impres-
sive 80,500 sq. ft. facility in the Greater Montreal
area that’s home to hundreds of employees and a
diverse distribution catalog comprised of some of
SFM FOUNDER & CEO
the top brands in the pro audio, pro visual, musical
SOL FLEISING
instrument, and custom integration markets.
“I actually started my company with $1,000,” Fleising shares,
recalling his five-year plan to raise enough capital as a rep to start
importing merchandise. “I knew early on that I’d be more successful
as a distributor than a rep, and it was actually just two years before
I signed an agreement with König & Meyer [stands in 1980] to
distribute their products in Canada.”
That year, the company moved into a new 3,000-sq. ft. office
and warehouse space. Exclusive Canadian distribution agreements
with now-iconic brands like QSC and Neutrik soon followed, and
in the ensuing decades, the company saw its distribution portfolio
grow in tandem with its overall profile.
In 2012, the company officially rebranded as SFM, formalizing
an ongoing shift in its approach to business that focuses more on
service and solutions than just products. That year also saw Fleising
take a step back in his role with the company, handing over day-
to-day operations to his executive team led by COO Randal Tucker,
who has since also been given the title of president.
“Distribution is an old business model, so we’ve been re-
thinking what that means,” shares Tucker about the company’s
evolution in recent years. “That involves continually asking a lot
of questions about what we do – sometimes difficult questions,
and we don’t always get the right answer, but we spend our time
thinking, ‘How do we offer something that’s relevant and valuable
10 PROFESSIONAL SOUND
RICHARD BOILEAU, MARKET DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST, TESTING SHURE PRODUCTS
to our customers, end users, and suppliers?’”
The company’s current Pro Audio catalog includes major and
iconic brands such as Shure, QSC, EAW, Genelec, Pioneer DJ, and
Telex, along with more recent additions like AudioPressBox, Avante
Audio, and Niles.
As Mike Gregory, director of sales, pro business unit, explains,
“The way we’re selling is different now than it was 10 years ago, or
even five years ago. We’ve adopted a systems-based approach on
the integration side of the business, where it’s been about building
an end-to-end solution.”
That formula has proven to be a winning one, as SFM’s total sales
have doubled in the past decade, surpassing $70 million in 2017/18.
In Gregory’s words, that success is the result of “being adaptable to
the market, and not trying to make the market adapt to you.”
While they may not have always been touted as loudly as they
have been lately, the cornerstones of SFM’s business – always adapt-
ing to the market, adding value at every possible stage of a trans-
action, and continually reinvesting in the business – have existed
since Fleising was driving across the country selling guitar amps and
speakers to Canadian music stores in the late ‘70s. Put simply, SFM’s
ongoing success is based on a balance between its proven and con-
tinually refined business practices and its rock and roll roots.
“We’ve always kept the customer at the centre of our business,”
says Fleising. “Everyone has to win to do good business, and that’s
what we strive for. I treat our employees, customers, and suppliers
how I’d like to be treated. It’s a very simple mantra.”
Andrew King is the Editor-in-Chief of Professional Sound.