PROFILE
Denis Lefrançois
By Andrew King
Denis Lefrançois is on a mission to establish the newly-rebranded SHOWSDT as one of the most successful and sought-after companies serving the international live production market . Easier said than done , of course , though Lefrançois has already achieved the feat with Solotech , the company he founded in 1977 and led for over 35 years , and he and his team at SHOWSDT are well on their way to reaching their goal .
“ When I left Solotech in 2013 , I started helping friends who owned companies in different fields ,” Lefrançois tells Professional Sound .“ One of those companies was Show Distribution / Scapin Staging . I knew the owner , Marc Desrochers , and his father Marcel , the founder and owner of [ projection screen manufacturer ] MDI , and my son Alexandre also headed their chain hoist division . In short , the showbiz industry is a field that ’ s always been fascinating to me , and founding SHOWSDT represented the next logical step in my career ; it ’ s a company that combines all the expertise I ’ ve built over the years .”
When Lefrançois formally joined the Show / Scapin group in 2014 , it was to mentor the younger Desrochers and guide the company through the integration of its latest acquisition , motion control software firm Niscon . Three years later , he was named GM of the group that then included Show Distribution , Scapin Staging , JDI International , and JDI FireProofing in addition to Niscon . Then , in 2018 , they restructured the whole company , with Lefrançois and the FICC – a venture capital corporation with a focus on Quebec ’ s cultural and communications sector – sharing ownership .
“ The goal was to create a large-scale manufacturer for the entertainment industry that was involved in the creative aspects of its projects ,” explains Lefrançois . “ For me , this goal could be accomplished by becoming an owner , hiring new key employees , and rebranding the group , and today , we ’ re headed in the right direction !”
The group ’ s official rebranding as SHOWSDT – the SDT standing for Scene , Design , and Technology – in mid-June
2020 is a major milestone on the journey so far . “ The group had many names under the same roof and most customers didn ’ t know the extent of everything we could offer ,” explains the president and CEO . “ The pandemic became an opportunity to review our mission and vision , and bring them to life through a new branding that represents everything we can do .”
Looking back on all they ’ ve accomplished thus far , Lefrançois acknowledges the challenges of the initial financial and HR restructuring . “ As I mentioned , becoming an actual owner and hiring new key employees while keeping the strong base we had was very important to becoming who we are ,” he shares , adding : “ With Show Distribution in Quebec and the U . S . and Scapin in Montreal , we had to raise the quality of deliverables beyond the industry standard . It was important to me that every product , every part , every action we participated in was done with our clients in mind .”
Of course , the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic presents an unprecedented challenge for a company specializing in live events , but even there , Lefrançois and his team aren ’ t just biding their time . “ We ’ re still reinventing ourselves every day to make sure we are at the front of the line when the show restarts ,” he asserts . “ We expect our industry will be one of the last to come back , but together , we will come through .”
That resilience and optimism comes from decades of experience at the forefront of this one-of-a-kind industry – one that ’ s given him plenty of reward , and that he still relishes being a part of to this day .
“ I ’ m very proud of the team we ’ ve built ,” Lefrançois says when asked about personal highlights of his time at the helm of SHOWSDT thus far . “ We have a strong core with international experience that can deliver projects in several divisions : staging , curtains , and rigging , as well as control for hoists and winches . We ’ ve also done work in all kinds of markets and will continue to do so as we move forward – tours , theatres , arenas , shopping centres , TV studios , international exhibitions , clubs and casinos , theme parks , special projects , and more .”
Since speaking with PS in late August , Lefrançois has announced two more significant acquisitions – Montreal-based scenery and staging firm Artotech Intégration and Toronto-based rigging specialists Joel Theatrical – with plans to leverage their respective expertise , reputations , and market share to expand the group ’ s international profile .
Lefrançois acknowledges that there ’ s still plenty of work to be done , and much of it will be during a time of immense hardship and uncertainty ; however , he and his team have their sights set on their goal and are unwavering in their determination .
“ It ’ s not a matter of if show business will come back ; it ’ s when . Human interactions are important and live entertainment is a major part of that . I know our industry will come out stronger than ever ,” he states confidently – and the same can already be said about SHOWSDT .
Andrew King is the former Editor-in-Chief of Professional Sound .
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