Ampere is the latest Cape Town based rental and technical production company to invest in Robe Pointe moving lights, adding eight fixtures to their hire stock.
The company was founded in 2009 by Justin Fish whilst still studying at the University of Cape Town. Graduating in 2011, Ampere’s growth trajectory has been impressive and interesting, currently with 30 full time employees and a busy order book ranging from top end corporate events to trendy music festivals!
Entering the offices of the industrial unit in Paarden Eiland, you immediately realise it’s a creative and vibrant environment with funky interior designs and imaginative environmental lighting. In addition to supplying full technical production – sound, lighting, video, staging and rigging - there’s also a full scenic division, plus Ampere has its own show design team.
One of Ampere’s USPs is seeking out and investing in more unique and innovative technologies to incorporate in their work … and to differentiate themselves from others.
They have an open policy when it comes to brands, and the Pointes are their first Robe purchase, delivered via South African distributor DWR’s Cape Town office run by Bradley Bruchhausen.
“We think Robe is definitely making the best multi-purpose beam fixture right now,” confirms Justin.
Ampere has frequently cross-hired Robe products for various projects as needed over the last couple of years, so they already knew from this experience that Pointes would meet their creative and technical requirements as well as the quality and reliability standards.
“We are open to any brand and our purchasing decisions are based on client demand to some extent, coupled with what makes the most business sense in terms of sub-rental potential,” explains Justin, who sees Robe currently “at the top” of the South African rental market.
The long relationship with DWR, and their “top level” service and support is also an important part of the equation for any rental operation.
Justin likes the price-to-performance ratio of the Pointe and its general versatility. “We can use them on absolutely all types of events,” he says.
Ampere’s initial business focussed on servicing corporates, but as the company and its reputation has expanded, the entertainment side of the business has mushroomed, especially in the summer outdoor festival market.
The new Pointes were immediately dispatched to the Shimmy Beach Club on Cape Town’s V&A Waterfront for a series of festive shows including a New Year’s Eve DJ and dance extravaganza which featured 18 x Pointes and 12 x Robe DL4S profiles. As soon as that was done, they were off to the popular boutique “We Love Summer” festival at Franschoek Wine Estate in Somerset West. .
The LD for “We Love Summer” was Ampere’s Tommy Lee who encouraged Justin to make the purchase and was extremely happy when it happened! “I love the beams” he declares, “you can get a huge amount of effects out of them, and the light weight and small size makes rigging quicker, easier and very practical!”