Interview with Agris Galiņš, Board Member and Commercial Director of 3S, Ltd.
1. What were the guidelines when looking for new lighting equipment?
3S is one of the most experienced companies in the sector in Latvia, upgrading and expanding its range of rental stage equipment consisting of professional sound and lighting solutions.
"One of our core areas is technical support for events of all sizes ranging from small corporate events to huge concerts in arenas, therefore we needed equipment that could be used on any scale," says Agris Galiņš.
AG: - The key factor when making the choice was: to have a spot type moving head light with light weight and small dimensions, an LED light source, very high light output and good volume price.
2. Can the market demand in Latvia justify the large-scale purchase of identical equipment?
AG: - Currently, there is only one stage equipment rental company in Latvia that can offer one type of equipment in large numbers when it is required by the stage lighting design.
This used to be a challenge for us, as we were forced to turn to competitors to be able to cater for large events, which increased the cost of our services and affected our competitive edge.
The demand for multiple units of single-type equipment in Latvia is growing, therefore our aim was to purchase enough identical equipment units to be able to supply one large event or 2 to 3 small events at the same time.
3. There is fierce competition in the market, where the "lowest price" is often the winner, with cheap Chinese products and low-quality copies of well-known brands dominating. How are you planning to compete?
AG: - When choosing new lighting equipment, the purchase price does, of course, matter, but one should not compromise on the quality! We researched and compared a number of well-known brands of equipment and included some Chinese-made moving spotlights in the comparison for the sake of interest, however, in terms of performance and quality, the AXCOR SPOT 300 moving head spotlight by Clay Paky matched our requirements best, and, due to its competitive pricing, almost exactly fit our budget.
Undoubtedly, Chinese-developed equipment is much cheaper, however, even when using an LED light source that is twice as powerful, the brightness only slightly exceeds AXCOR SPOT 300. In addition, the colours are dull and the precision of several functions is far from desirable and not acceptable for high-quality light design. The good news is that the rental price of AXCOR SPOT 300 for end consumers will not differ significantly from equipment made in China.
4. So, you are saying that a well-known brand does matter in your business after all?
AG: Certainly! The rental lighting equipment range of 3S still only includes products by world-renowned manufacturers, such as Clay Paky, and we have positive first-hand experience in terms of quality and the manufacturer’s response to any reported issues. I therefore firmly believe that Clay Paky is a highly reliable and collaborative manufacturer that quickly addresses any problem situations when they occur. Therefore 72 units of AXCOR SPOT 300 lighting equipment by Clay Paky are the latest addition to the rental equipment range of 3S.
It is a large number, but if there is a project that requires even more devices of such kind, we can rent them from other Baltic states or Europe because choosing a well-known brand means 100% compatibility with identical parameters. This would not be possible using Chinese-made equipment, as it may differ, even from batch to batch.
And there is more. An important argument in favour of a well-known brand are the technical riders submitted by artists. It is practically impossible to replace the technical equipment specified for concerts of famous artists with unknown Chinese products. Equipment produced by Clay Paky is well known and recognised worldwide.
