German Sevillano, owner and CEO of Mexican technical production and rental company Meridian, is a shrewd operator with a keen eye for spotting trends and listening to what the market and his customers want, and this has driven his steady investment in Robe moving lights over the years, with the latest purchase being 50 x iFORTE LTX fixtures.
These are added to his four RoboSpot systems, also purchased in the last year, together with a fleet of older but still active Robe products, including 124 x MegaPointes, Spiider wash beams and Pointes, all working on Meridian’s full range of shows and events, which are centered around concert touring, music festivals and corporate and business events.
All projects are serviced from their two busy warehouses in the Iztapalapa district in Mexico City, coordinated by around 50 full-time staff plus freelancers.
“iFORTE is a very popular fixture here in Mexico, primarily in demand for its power and versatility,” explained German. Before purchasing, he noted that several major rental companies already had stock of the original iFORTE – thanks to the proactivity of Robe distributor SHOWCO – so he decided to get the iFORTE LTX version, which is a more recent and even brighter model.
With a smile, he also admits to liking being the first with a specific product and at the forefront of steering the industry. “I already knew that I would have plenty of work for the iFORTES,” he stated.
In addition to their own projects, he cites the healthy cross-rental market in Mexico, which works both ways. The Robe fixtures are utilized for Meridian’s own highest-profile shows and tours, but if they need to ramp up the numbers, there’s a good supply of the most frequently specified models. Conversely, reversing that rental direction, if fixtures are available, they are frequently out supplementing other events.
He feels that having a premium brand onboard has certainly helped Meridian’s business model evolve.
The rental market in Mexico sees a healthy amount of cooperation between the major players, so they all tend to deal with one another at some stage.
Meridian’s iFORTE LTXs have recently been on cross rentals to some high-profile shows including The Weeknd, Ricky Martin and many more on the vibrant Latin music scene. At the end of last year, Meridian supplied over 120 iFORTES to legendary Mexican rock band Zoé, who played 6 sold out shows at the Estadio GNP Seguros.
German sees high-powered fixtures like FORTE as a savvy investment, especially as LED screens, video elements and pixels on most shows are getting bigger, brighter and more prevalent, so high-intensity lights are needed.
The IP rating of the iFORTE LTX was also important, as there are many outdoor shows and music festivals across the country and in other parts of Latam, and the rain is often unpredictable.
Meridian was among the first Mexican companies to invest in Robe’s game-changing Pointe multifunctional moving light when it was launched in 2013, and these and the MegaPointes are still working constantly, out on almost every project from festival to golf tournaments and recent tours with Argentinian rappers Paulo Londra and Cazzu.
“They have been an incredible investment, and I expect the iFORTES LTXs to be the same,” he commented.
Meridian is a house technical supplier at the famous Teatro Metropólitan in Mexico City, a much-loved art deco theater in the city center, with its 3000-capacity regularly sold out with people enjoying music events, jazz, theater, dance, and other genres of performance. The house lighting rig there includes 22 x MegaPointes and 22 x Spiiders.
He concluded by saying that the support, service and training offered by SHOWCO as a distributor has been “fantastic” and another solid reason for enthusiastically embracing Robe, which he believes is currently the leading moving light brand.
Photos by Louise Stickland