Given that the vast majority of income comes from outside the UK market (80% or thereabouts), the Salisbury site can’t be expanded in its current location, it makes little sense to relocate in Wilshire or even the UK to support global market reach and growth, what they are now doing is their best option to increase revenue and sustain growth.
The bit we’ll find hard dealing with is that those things can’t be achieved without some changes to country of final build and shipment.
As long as the right folks are in control of the QA and supply chain and the R&D stays where it is there’s no reason to assume it’ll make things suddenly broken.
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I suppose the question to ask yourself is would you rather have Naim split their manufacturing between UK and abroad and still be a current viable brand…or have Naim consigned to the hifi history books?
Some seem to be forgetting the people that work there.
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Doubt would happen Rolex are the ultimate control freeks. Protecting their brand at all costs. At all costs.
Sudden for us……but Simon Mathews and other senior guys left last year. There will be some sprinklings of good news for the Naim U.K business……not convinced. Will make and talk to my dealer when i decide to upgrade?
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exactly…and so they should
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I heard from a good source that Naim won’t compromise on its usual standards and its priority is to make sure future demand meets its very stringent criteria.
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That’s probably a lot more fun than buying a football club. I have never fully understood billionaires’ attraction to football ownership…
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Just keep an eye on Steve Sells LinkedIn.
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I hope the new production and manufacture know exactly where to put the cable ties for best sound.
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Indeed👍
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Well, once I have had everything at all possible serviced at Naim HQ, I suppose that that will probably be be the last thing that I shall ever buy from Naim.
Which will be a sad thing to have to do. (Although Naim’s ability to service increasing numbers of their ‘legacy’ products seems to be dropping away - I have in mind CD players, tuners, the lovely ARO, etc. There are almost certainly others.)
That will take things to just over thirty years from buying all that lovely stuff at Grahams HiFi in 1990 to sending off his last set of boxes for servicing (I hope).
Naim would seem to be at risk of throwing away an awful lot of customer loyalty goodwill, but I suppose that that is a decision for Focal these days.
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Interesting, as long as quality is the same, then no real problem.
But having seen things like this before in other business, their quality might not be the same, but that’s down to naim to make sure it is. If not, then i can see a lot of very unhappy customers in the future and many faults.
But let’s hope not.
Naim can still service most things, including CD players. It’s lack of some of the old parts like mechs that can be a problem. Also, Naim can still service tuners, although again, some parts like the bespoke tuner head or FL display are so long out of production that replacement is now impossible.
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I think we can see where this will lead. Lets not kid ourselves. Manufacturing will gradually leave the UK, leaving just R&D, Servicing and ‘very small volume’ product manufacture (Statement & 500 series - ?) in Salisbury.
‘All in all, its just another brick in the Wall…’
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Mustn’t grumble, gives us something else to talk about, the 200 Series thread was getting hard to keep up with anyway!
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I feel the (economic) nationalism in some of the earlier posts is actually more political than referring to the obvious B-word in this context…
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Hardly surprising
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Hello, Richard, I have no doubt at all (from my own observation on a flying visit to the Factory many years ago that the will is there to try to help (say) fix a CD player or a tuner head, but that won’t be a lot of help to someone with a bust tuner or CD player, very sadly, if the replacement parts are no longer obtainable…
Anyway, let’s keep hoping that new parts might suddenly emerge.
Obviously you are on the fence on this one Graham.
Personally I have no issue. It would appear a sensible strategy to service the european market and boost delveries to the home market which remain designed and manufactured here. I like to support uk business, but am realistic enough to appreaciate that the modern global economy does not always make this possible or desireable.
Naim will continue to secure brand loyalty as long as it delivers products that deliver. Other considerations are simply irrelevant to the vast majority of modern consumers.
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Well, I know that the Naim purchasing are constantly on the lookout. The problem is that it’s easy to get burned, particularly on “NOS” mechs.