Latin America. 2023 will be a year for history at Videocorp. First, because it celebrates 40 years of being one of the most important players in the AV, security and broadcast industries in Chile and with a presence in other countries in the region. Second, because it has just been acquired by the manufacturer Ricoh.
AVI Latin America spoke with Alfonso Vergara Rivera, from the family that owns Videocorp until today, who said: "2 years ago Ricoh asked us to implement some projects. After the good result, InfoComm 2022 expressed interest in the acquisition, which we finalized after a year and four months of negotiation."
Ricoh acquires Videocorp's operations in Chile and Peru, in the areas of AV and security, which will continue to operate under the name Videocorp. The Colombia office did not enter into the negotiation because its operation is mainly broadcast, but there is a commitment not to continue operations in the AV and security sectors.
The business includes Cayman, a distributor of AV products, with a presence in Peru and Chile, which Videocorp had created two years ago to separate its distribution and integration lines. Jan Mengdehl continues as its general manager.
Ricoh seeks to concentrate on the integration and execution of AV-as-a-Service projects, as it has been doing for some years in Europe and the United States, where it has already acquired some companies. In Latin America, this approach is just beginning with the acquisition of Videocorp. To do so, they seek to leverage Videocorp's regional market infrastructure and knowledge, with Ricoh's muscle and powerful customer base in Latam.
Alfonso Vergara Rivera will continue to work with the company for the next three years as an advisor. 150 of Videocorp's 170 employees are now part of the Ricoh team, which has 3,000 employees in Latam and 90,000 worldwide. Felipe Hoyuela remains at the helm of Videocorp.
"We have taken great care of our collaborators, to give them a good projection. We feel enormous satisfaction that collaborators, who have been with us for many years, continue with a good company," said Alfonso Vergara Rivera.
After this negotiation, the Vergara family does not dissociate itself from the industry, they continue with a significant investment in the rental company RLA Event Technologies. And the broadcast area, which accounts for 30% of Videocorp's business, is still in the hands of the family, under a new company called Dynamics Media Group, of which Alfonso Vergara Rivera is its CEO. This operation has a team of 10 people in Chile and 10 in Colombia.
Videocorp was founded in 1983 by Alfonso Vergara Salas, who today, at 75 years of age and already retired, sees with great satisfaction the negotiation that has just been closed, because he seeks, in this way, to guarantee that the company can continue operating for another 40 years with a partner like Ricoh.
His son, Alfonso Vergara Rivera, acknowledged that today he has a mixture of feelings, starting with a business satisfaction in guaranteeing the future of the company, as well as a huge gratitude to the people who have passed and who are in Videocorp, and also sorrow for the family history behind the company.
