Pinnacle shows off

BELLEVILLE, Ill.--When Pinnacle Electronics began to look for a larger facility to house its growing business and a product showroom, it only had to go four blocks to find a suitable location. Pinnacle found a facility to rent that is four times the size of its previous location, with 8,400 square feet. It enabled the 13-year-old systems integration firm to dedicate 2,000 square feet to its first showroom for customers. "This had been in the works for years," said Bryan Bowman, founder and chief executive officer of Pinnacle Electronics, a small integration company located in the Metro East area of Southern Illinois. "We always knew it would be nice to have a showroom and we never had the space to entertain it previously." Now, the company is able to show customers the cameras, surveillance and commercial fire alarm systems it installs, instead of explaining the product using a brochure. "It gives us a lot of space for cameras," said Bowman. "To show people the difference between an expensive camera versus a cheaper camera or black-and-white versus color." Pinnacle Electronics installed more than half a dozen cameras outside the company's building, enabling the customer to see a PTZ camera or fixed camera in use. Though it has only been five months since Pinnacle Electronics relocated and added a product showroom, the company is already reaping the benefits. Sales are up, according to Bowman, who anticipated the investment in the showroom would turn into a financial gain for his business. Bowman declined to release financial information on the company or its employee headcount, but characterized the company as "fairly small."