BANDIT HISTORY: 40 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE
Part 6: How Can We Make It Better?

Bandit Lites’ pursuit of excellence began with one 12-year-old child in 1968 and grew into a global leader in entertainment lighting. To borrow a phrase from the Grateful Dead, the “long strange journey” has been a very interesting one. The company was named “Bandit” because Michael Strickland and staff initially “borrowed” the lights from the local high school theater to light the Monkees, The Beach Boys and other bands of the era. The growth of the company continued as Strickland attended the University of Tennessee for degrees in business and law. Fires, inventions and great people made the ride action packed.

Around the same time the company nearly lost everything in a 1979 fire, an artist named Kenny Rogers came onto the scene. The 80’s brought tremendous success with hair bands like Twisted Sister, Quiet Riot and Ratt as Bandit led the way. The country craze proved a big boost with Kenny Rogers, Mickey Gilley and Alabama as well as a host of others. The Southern Rock genre was literally the rage in the 80’s as Bandit led the way with Molly Hatchet, Blackfoot, the Outlaws and other notable acts in that same period. The ownership of Thomas Engineering, Avo and Tomcat all took root in the 80’s and were all later sold in the 90’s. Bandit began purchasing real estate, a move that would be very beneficial for the future of the company. This was a crucial time in the development of the ‘Bandit Standard,’ the ideology behind Bandit today.

Bandit continued to move forward and with the assistance of Mikey Weiss, Bandit took a leadership role in the industry in fall protection in the 90’s. The term ‘Humanomics’ came into being in the early 90’s, and that philosophy of business planning based on the concern for people has steered Bandit Lites ever since. Bandit manufactures a full range of motor control devices, power distribution devices and other items to meet the needs of the global market they serve. The development of real estate ownership became a part of the Bandit business plan in the 90’s and the holdings of the firm are very large today. Throughout the 90’s and toward today, Bandit has had key partnerships with High End Systems, Martin and Vari*Lite as light fixtures became more sophisticated and more in demand. Today Bandit continues those relationships as media control and LED products are racing to the forefront of the industry.

Through the years, Bandit has proudly had the opportunity to work on world-renowned events such as Super Bowl Halftime shows, Woodstock, Bonnaroo, WWE, CMA Music Festival, Presidential Inaugural Balls, Blenheim Palace Festivals, and hundreds of other such shows. Van Halen, Queen, Garth Brooks, Jimmy Buffett, R.E.M., Radiohead and too many other great acts have allowed Bandit the privileged of touring with them. The depth and width of the 40-year body of work Bandit Lites has enjoyed is the reward for the development of the ‘Bandit Standard’ that the company designed and implemented over time.

Bandit’s future includes building expansions in Nashville and London. A new 50,000 square foot facility is being readied in London to better serve the needs of the European market. New staff is being hired and millions of pounds in new equipment was added to an already impressive inventory in June 2008. Nashville will see improvements to Venue One including an upgrade of the in-house programming suites and a new hang room, giving that location a total of two hang rooms. Bandit continues to invest in new media servers and control consoles, as well as into new digital lighting products and LED products as clients request them. The search for good people to join the Bandit family is a never-ending task, as is the constant quest to improve conditions in the work environment.

Another exciting step forward for Bandit is the recent appointment of Peter M. Heffernan, a 30-year veteran, as President of the firm. Heffernan is now serving as both President and C.O.O., a role he has held for the last 15 years. Heffernan began his fulltime relationship with Bandit Lites in 1978. He moved into an administrative position in 1985 after serving as a lighting director and production manager for a number of touring artists including Blackfoot and Quiet Riot among others. As President and C.O.O. he will be working with the staff and management overseeing the day-to-day operations in order to grow Bandit even further in the years to come.

Finally, and most important, are the hundreds of incredible people globally that make up Bandit Lites. None of the success would have been possible without the dedication, ethics and hard work from the people that are Bandit Lites. Quite simply, Bandit Lites people! Any firm can buy equipment, but it takes special people to make it all successful and Bandit has the best people in the world. Bandit is heading toward the 50th anniversary with even more excitement and enthusiasm than they have had in the first 40 years. The entire team is poised and eager to offer all of their friends and clients the best solutions to their visual needs. Bandit would like to thank all of the numerous friends and clients they have made in the last 40 years for trusting Bandit with their illumination needs. Bandit promises to continue to raise the bar, increase the quality, and guarantee satisfaction that exceeds expectations.

Bandit will always ask the question, “How can we make it better?”