Bose buys McIntosh

We might see some mid-tier McIntosh & Sonus Faber models enter the Bose distribution channel, but prestige branding for the luxury auto market is the big score-- and Bose has lots to gain here. Who is winning?

Bose: Honda, Mazda, Porsche

McIntosh: Jeep

Harman Kordan: BMW, VW, Volvo, KIA

Burmester: Porsche, Mercedes, Ferrari

Mark Levenson: Lexus

JBL: Toyota

Meridian: Jaguar, Range Rover

B&W: McLaren, Aston Martin

Naim: Bentley

Bespoke Audio: Rolls Royce

B&O: Audi

Muskmobile*: Unbranded(?) Harman, JBL, Levinson, AKG

*Note: Musk reportedly uses Sonus Faber speakers in his home gaming system.

I felt kind of sick when I heard this but then I realized that McIntosh was as owned by Clarion in the 90s. Point being, that really didn’t affect their products at all, and as time went on so did Clarion. They are truly an American survivor. No big deal!

Maybe Bose being expose to highend they might improve their lower end.I own Bose box 1k for more than 20 yrs now. For the price I paid Iam happy. Of course it’s different when I play either one of my systems.Lets all wait and see.

As others have mentioned, the last 2 owners have been private equity.  From a business standpoint, Bose is likely a far better option from an ownership standpoint than a PE firm.  PE firms often destroy culture, branding, quality and along the way load their investments up with a ton of debt.  They know going in that only a percentage of the companies they invest in will survive and their soul goal is to build up revenue, market share so they can flip the investment for a profit.  A PE firm could care less about the market their investments companies are in or their customers.  The fact McIntosh has not only survived but thrived during several sales, PE ownership / management is a testament to the brands value, staying power.  Doesn’t really matter if you like Bose or not, the fact they are at least in the Audio space and appear to value that space with an eye for growth sets up McIntosh for a better long term shot at success.  It wasn’t sustainable for Mac to continue to be spun off to PE Firms, no company survives continuing to ride on that Merry Go Round ride.  If you know PE firms and how they work, this isn’t a bad thing.  Now, could Bose damage the brand, hurt the quality by making bad decisions on cutting cost and hurting the quality of the gear, absolutely, hopefully they approach this from the top down, look to McIntosh for the blueprint on how to sell high end gear at what I would guess are way higher profit margins than what they are used to seeing.  

There is little doubt that Bose will use their stellar product management team to find ways to reduce the prices of McIntosh gear. 

Bose currently uses China, Malaysia, and Mexico to manufacture parts and using parts made abroad to utilize in McIntosh products is a no-brainer. The previous investment firm owners squeezed all the money they could out of Binghamton, but did not have the want or the expertise to reduce the price by outsourcing. Bose does.

McIntosh has been lagging as a leader in high end gear for years. Storied? Yes. Superior name associated with a hi-end sound signature? Yes. Competitive? Not so much.

To give one a quick synopsis; McIntosh revenue was $42 million last year. Bose revenue was $3 billion. Yamaha audio was nearly a billion. Harmon $2.3 billion. Heck, even Klipsch bests McIntosh with reference to revenue. Market share for McIntosh products has significantly decreased, while they are being beaten handily by competitors who are far more globally savvy. 

To be blunt, there is a lot that a company like Bose can do to increase revenue for a brand name as recognizable as McIntosh. The name will be compromised- the products will suffer- but more people will purchase them.

Capitalism is what makes America great. While outsourcing has been controversial in nature, there is no doubt that manufacturing in America is over - and there is no going back.