Derann Audio Visual

It all started some 41 years ago - way back in 1964 - with a £50.00 maternity pay cheque, a great deal of hard work and sheer determination.

Since then Derann (the name is made up from the husband and wife team who started the company ‘Derek and Anne’) have gone from strength to strength and are now the largest independent electric retailer in Dudley and the worlds biggest Super 8mm film distributor.

The family owned business was set up when cinema projectionist Derek Simmonds and his wife Anne, started hiring out 8mm films from a bedroom at their Stourbridge home. Soon the couple had built up a steadily growing army of customers - many of which still buy all their electrical goods from Dereks son Adrian who now manages the business - and the business started to grow and grow.

With a steady stream of 8mm releases under his belt, Derek added more and more lucrative film deals to his now impressive catalogue - the biggest of these being United Artists and Disney, although Disney did take some 14 years to succumb.

Now the company supply all of the classic and up to date Disney animated features on 8mm not only to collectors in Britain, but also across Europe.

Derann are privileged to be one of the few companies in the world that Disney have loaned out negative material to.

In the late seventies the whole country witnessed a dramatic change to the viewing habits of the people, now for the very first time they were able to record items off the television set - the video age was born!

It wasn’t too longer after that the film companies would see this as a huge revenue boost for them and so the pre recorded video was released. Very soon video libraries were springing up everywhere, but who had the largest library in Dudley? - it was Derann, boasting an impressive 10,000 titles. At this period Derek decided that if he could release 8mm films successfully, then why not video?

Over the next seven years Derann released over 110 titles on both VHS, BETAMAX, and V2000 formats. Amongst the most popular of these were the Alistair Maclean thriller ‘Caravan to Vaccares’, the hugely successful ‘Cannibal’ and a soft porn romp with a very young Sylvester Stallone aptly titled ‘The Italian Stallion’

Along with the advent of video Derann decided it was time to go into the electronics market with a new audio visual department. Sony and JVC products were amongst the very first to be sold.

It wasn’t until the mid eighties that terrestrial companies made a dramatic improvement in the sound quality that was transmitted - stereo was at last available to people in the comfort of their own homes.

‘It was at this time’ comments Adrian ‘ that we noticed the general public had started to return to the cinemas. Pictures were getting bigger and better with spectacular computer generated effects and people wanted to try and create the feeling within their own home of the experience of once again ‘going to the movies’, rather like my father had noticed some 40 years ago when he started the company and was hiring out 8mm movies.

People were buying larger and larger sets, so we decided to go one better and started to sell liquid crystal projectors. This enables people to show, from all the various formats available - television, video, and DVD, a 6,7 or 8 foot picture onto a tripod or wall mounted screen. The quality of which is absolutely stunning.

We now have a fully functional demonstration room with Dolby digital surround sound and an impressive 7 foot picture. ”Everything has come full circle” comments Adrian “people still want a big picture but instead of using film they are now using digital technology which gives much better sound and picture quality”

With the advent of digital terrestrial television programs the picture and sound quality has once again leaped forward and as usual Derann are at the forefront with an excellent shop display area and knowledgeable, friendly staff.

“We pride ourselves on being a family owned business” comments Adrian “ and strive to provide our customers with the best after sales service in the area, but with prices more competitive than the majority of the large retailers - after all, anyone can sell a box.”

Indeed Derann are now one of the few remaining electrical retailers in Dudley. Being a family owned business also means that they can give impartial advice on all electrical products, and, having been involved in the movie business for over 40 years, their knowledge of surround equipment and large screen tv/projection is second to none.