Today we’d like to introduce you to Sandy Nasseri.
Hi Sandy, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
In 2003, I opened our first MelroseMAC store in Hollywood where we partnered with Apple as an Apple Specialist. My educational background is a degree in Electronics and Electrical Engineering at ORT Technical Institute, and I wanted to meet the accelerating needs in the media technology sector. I understood the business challenges facing the entertainment marketplace and launched a company that would meet those needs. In less than one year, MelroseMAC’s second location was opened in Burbank to accommodate the immediate needs of nearby production studios. As our business grew, it was important to me to become an integral member of the Apple Reseller community, and I have served on the board for 9 of the last 15 years.
As years passed, many of our MelroseMAC customers asked us to not only procure products and repair machines but to help install and implement the systems they were purchasing. With that, MelroseTEC was born along with MelroseSRC. MelroseTEC provides clients with customized, large-scale solutions to create their infrastructure or improve upon an existing one. I am proud to say that together with our esteemed partners, our divisions of MelroseINC provide products and services to customers such as Disney, Netflix, Paramount Pictures, Fox, Red Bull, Cedars-Sinai Hospital, Universal Music Group, Bad Robot, Viacom, NASA, Snapchat, and many more.
From those two storefront locations, MelroseINC has evolved into a multi-million-dollar company with top-level partners and customers that know we are here to serve.
As a woman-in-business leader working in a male-dominated industry, I always strive to be a voice for women in technology. Besides serving on the Apple Advisory Reseller Board, I’m also fortunate to serve as the President and Chair of the AVID Customer Association for the Reseller Channel and be active in the American Express Women’s Initiative. In my heart, I am dedicated to the concept of repairing the world. To that end, two of the foundations we actively support and hold events with are The Book Foundation and Alexandria House in Los Angeles. As a military veteran, it is also important to me to promote veteran hiring in both our company and in those of our colleagues.
I am blessed to work with my husband Sean for all these years and to live in Los Angeles with our two beautiful children.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Owning a business is just like raising kids. It’s never a smooth ride. Our company caters to a fast-paced, ever-changing market around technology solutions for Post Production and Media. Overnight the pandemic forced everyone to create new workflows to accommodate remote editorial. We have been deemed an essential business, so when most of the Apple Stores temporarily shut down, we picked up the business, which has been a blessing. Unfortunately, our stores also became a target.
During the important BLM protests, gangs of looters attacked our Hollywood Flagship store and main headquarters. They literally stole everything and burnt our business to the ground. The most challenging moment was then facing all the clients whose computers had been checked into our service department for repair and were either stolen or destroyed. It wasn’t the fact that we had to rebuild our location (and we have) or the months it will take to account for missing inventory or projects put on hold or dealing with insurance companies.
The most challenging moment for me was not being able to control the situation in any way. I couldn’t save anyone’s machines; I couldn’t help our building while the flames were eating the store; I was utterly powerless. This process has taught me to be even more patient, grateful that we are all safe, and understanding that there is a bright light waiting to shine behind every dark event. The way I’m thinking of it today is that now that we have a hole in the roof, I can finally get the skylights I’ve always hoped to have.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
As the President and Co-Founder of MelroseINC, a WOSB and WBENC certified woman-owned business; our company is a technology industry leader. MelroseINC started in 2013 as an Apple reseller in Hollywood and has grown to be an award-winning top five Apple Premier partner. MelroseINC has three distinct divisions: MelroseMAC, our experience centers in Hollywood and Burbank with service centers around MAC and MAC products; MelroseSRC, our national procurement and distribution arm; and MelroseTEC, our systems integrations group that designs end-to-end technology solutions for clients seeking improvements to their storage, content creation, asset management, I.T., and mobility needs. Our dedication to providing our customers with superior service and professional transparency, from start to finish, sets MelroseINC apart in today’s marketplace.
One of the things I am proudest of is how our team members treat our customers and each other. Because of our service level, I believe that we are seen as unique in an industry where standing out is nearly impossible. We’ve created a diverse and talented workplace with over ninety team members dedicated to providing our customers with the best possible experience.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
Our industry has taken a substantial shift during covid. Having to move live production and post-production to work from home has created a huge demand for remote workflows and disaster recovery solutions. People often think that Media and Entertainment only applies to TV and Movies; however, content is everywhere now. Media can be anything: A recording of a trial, a short tutorial video on how to change your tire, an open-heart surgery, recordings of Jet Fighters shooting targets on the ground. Pretty much any segment of the market creates content now from medical to legal, corp. Videos and military and government training. With the ever-growing need for content and the ability to work remotely the possibilities are endless. Now that we solved the challenge of collaboration in a creative environment with advanced technology and custom workflows, we need to concentrate on Data Analytics. Statistics has shown that no matter how good your information is today, it will be obsolete by tomorrow. Hence, solution-based AI and machine learning are helping track consumer behavior which dictates which content sells better.
Creating a culture where analytics flourishes require a change in the way we create and deliver content. Professionals are trusted less and made more accountable for return on their efforts. That will require business leaders to explore a new way to invest in their businesses and be ready to explore a major investment.
Crisis such as the pandemic reminded us that disaster can create new opportunities. Those who can learn the fastest are the best positioned to succeed. Smart companies will invest in technology and AI to get ahead of what is coming next.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.melroseinc.com
- Instagram: MelroseINCLA
