Given the high entry threshold, he needed external funding, and negotiated with several venture capital investors until he finally came to an agreement with Garangold in 2015.

Initially, purchasing equipment wasn’t the company’s only focus and they put a great deal of effort into training skilled staff, something which continues to be necessary to this day. The Group took the name Visual Europe Group after the acquisition of AV-Control Kft. and DCN Rental Kft. in 2016. The company is still focusing on acquisition plans and they intend to purchase additional companies in Hungary and abroad.

Currently their two main activities are the sale and installation of audiovisual systems, and the rental of event technology equipment.

The growth of the construction sector in recent years has benefitted market players and made the industry prosper. The company was awarded the largest AV project of the past 20 years which involved installing interactive displays in the teaching rooms at the Central European University and introducing a streaming service which allows students to follow all lectures online and re-watch classes afterwards. Currently, CEU has more digital solutions than any other university in Hungary. Last year, for example, they did the urban projection on St. Stephen's Basilica and the House of Terror for the 1956 memorial year, and on the Basilica during the advent market.

As part of their equipment rental operation, they work at conferences, festivals and corporate events, as well as sensitive international diplomatic events, thanks to their extremely high standards of service. As a result of their innovative solutions and state-of-the-art equipment they lead the market in both segments.

Visual Europe invests heavily into external communications and PR, which, in their experience, has paid off.

They also plan visual appearance and sound recording and reproduction jointly with their customers. What’s more, they specialise in visual design, and their solutions can be tried out at their new Budapest site. They also have a demo space for assembling installations before an event. This is a unique service that no other Hungarian technology company offers.

But how are they able to keep abreast of Western European competition? While they do not want to offer considerably lower prices than their rivals, they have the advantage of being able to adapt more easily and flexibly to changing needs thanks to their professional background and staff. For example, not even implementing a project that would normally require 4 to 6 months within one month posed much of a problem. Being the official representatives of PRG group, the world’s largest event technology company, is another factor that instills trust in the company.

As for the company’s future, the venture capital investor will continue to own the company for a definite period, which means in addition to going public, there’s also a possibility for a foreign investor to come in and obtain a share of the company.

They do, however, have ambitious plans in the short term. They are currently working on a project called “future university” to develop a concept - based largely on experience gained with the CEU - to digitalise several areas of education. This means education would not only involve interactive boards but also notes that could be downloaded in digital form and a number of unique solutions to help both professors and students. This innovative customer engagement approach is also an important advantage in the event technology segment.