March 1, 2024
Signify Goes All-In with Synergy in NY Metro
Have NYC, New Jersey and Philly become one market?
In a significant shift within North America's largest lighting market, Signify has announced a new representative for its core luminaire and controls brands across the New York Metro and Northern New Jersey areas. Effective April 1, Synergy Electrical Sales is set to expand its partnership with Signify, taking on the Genlyte Solutions portfolio, a collection of brands that includes Lightolier, Day-Brite and Stonco. This move comes less than three years after appointing SLS as its Genlyte Solutions agent in New York Metro area.
This expansion for Synergy builds on an existing Signify foundation, with two key aspects:
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Since 2021, Synergy has represented Signify's lamps and ballasts in the Metropolitan New York area.
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In 2023, Synergy was appointed as the Genlyte Solutions agent in the Philadelphia market, a territory that encompasses Eastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, and all three Delaware counties.
"We are delighted to bolster our support for commercial and industrial projects across our full territory with Signify's innovative LED and connected lighting solutions," said Larry Rodger, President of Synergy Electrical Sales. "Our collaboration with Signify marks another significant step forward for Synergy Electrical Sales."
SLS Implications
This new partnership signals the end of Signify's fairly short partnership with SLS in the New York metro area. In mid-2021, SLS was named the Genlyte Solutions representative for the area, but the partnership seemingly did not achieve the expected traction. When Signify ended its relationship with Thea Enterprises, also known as Empire Lighting, in 2021, it divided its representation strategy by assigning lamps and ballasts to Synergy and appointing SLS as the new representative for fixtures and controls. Now Synergy has it all.
Before partnering with Signify, SLS was a formidable lighting representative focused on specifications and boasted a strong portfolio of architectural lighting brands. And moving forward without Signify, SLS still has a compelling lineup that includes Legrand brands such as Focal Point, WattStopper, Kenall, OCL and Finelite. Their brand portfolio also features other well-regarded architectural brands like Louis Poulsen, Crestron, FLOS, and Lighting Services Inc. (LSI). Given this diverse range of architectural offerings, local lighting people remain confident in SLS's continued strength as a specification representative.
Merging Markets: A Unified Approach
At Inside Lighting, we sometimes ask rhetorically whether New York City, North Jersey, and Philadelphia are becoming a single market from a manufacturer/agent perspective. We now believe they are. This isn't to suggest that agents and brands must adopt a uniform strategy across these areas, but all indicators suggest that these once distinct markets are combining into one large market for a growing number of manufacturers. Over the years, New England has morphed from three markets into one, but Acuity Brands still does quite well there with the triumvirate of independent agents Boston Light Source, Lighting Affiliates and Visible Light.
Interestingly, this New York to Philly expansion did not begin with New York City agents growing and branching out. Instead, this regional coverage model originated from three agencies, each based in the Metro Philadelphia area, which have gradually extended their reach into New York and Northern New Jersey.
It's also noteworthy that three of the four major lighting brands have adopted a unified agency approach across these regions. Acuity Brands, Current, and now Signify's Genlyte Solutions are each represented by a single agency that covers the region from Harrisburg to Poughkeepsie. The exception to this trend is Cooper Lighting Solutions, which partners with Enterprise Lighting Sales in New York Metro and Northern New Jersey, while Lighting Solutions represents Cooper Lighting in Philadelphia.
With more than twenty lighting representatives in the New York Metro area and conglomerate-led packages less influential in Manhattan's specification circles (compared to other U.S. markets), we believe that independent spec-focused agents will continue to succeed and provide value. However, over time, it may become more challenging for the smaller independents to attract coveted manufacturer partners exclusively for New York City, as large multi-territory representatives leverage their presence in North Jersey and Philadelphia to secure representation in the New York City territory as well.
Synergy and Signify: A Closer Look
This newly announced expanded partnership encompasses the Genlyte Solutions brands, which include a wide array of indoor and outdoor lighting solutions such as Interact, Philips Dynalite, Chloride, Day-Brite, Ledalite, Lightolier, Gardco, Hadco, Lumec, and Stonco.
Notably, Signify's Color Kinetics, with significant local projects like the Empire State Building under its belt, will continue to be represented by ELA in New York.
Until April 1, SLS will continue to represent Signify's Genlyte Solutions professional luminaires and lighting control systems. Meanwhile Signify’s representative for the municipal, utility, and transportation lighting markets within the region remain with Dave Murphy & Associates (DMA).
Signify’s Rob Mondillo, stepping in as the Northeast Zone Sales Leader for Genlyte Solutions, will manage this transition, tapping into his experience from his tenure at Signify since 2000, including roles in district sales for Metro New York/New Jersey and overseeing national distribution sales.
Signify's strategic realignment in the New York and Northern New Jersey markets, with Synergy Electrical Sales at the helm, reflects a broader trend towards market consolidation and unified representation in the lighting industry. As these regions merge into a singular market, the approach by major lighting brands and their representatives will continue to evolve, potentially setting new standards for industry practices and partnerships.
