AV Case Study: Merivale LED Investment

Merivale is upping its sports pub game with big investments in Absen LED screens into The Beresford Hotel and The Vic on the Park.

24 October 2025

Interview:/ Christopher Holder

The Merivale Group is investing in sport. In other words, it’s providing lovers of televised sport with pubs that promise superior viewing experiences. Yes, audio is important, and Merivale has been leading the pack for some time with its devotion to high quality audio, but its the big screens that are the most conspicuous centrepiece when it comes to enjoying the Big Game.

Absen LED screens have recently gone into two Merivale pubs in Sydney, The Beresford Hotel (in Surry Hills) and The Vic on the Park (Marrickville). Both are outdoor courtyard displays.

Merivale is one of Australia’s largest hospitality groups with a large portfolio of pubs, restaurants, bars and clubs across Sydney with a growing presence in Victoria and elsewhere.

We catch up with Merivale’s Technical Director, Glenn Rayner, to hear some more about the investment.

LED HISTORY

AV: How long has LED been part of Merivale’s offering?

Glenn Rayner: We’ve been using LED for probably about 15 years now, but traditionally it was just in our nightclubs, mostly for theming. Over the last five years or so, we’ve looked at putting LED into our pubs that have traditionally had a strong sports focus. We see it as a big upsell for punters who love their footy, and as other international sports continue to expand their reach in Australia, sport appeals to an even bigger demographic.

Initially, we sourced those LED screens ourselves. That was back when there was a lot of movement in the market, and it was easy to get product from China. But as the years went on, the support became lacking, so we wanted to partner with a distributor we knew could provide ongoing solid support. We’d already worked with NAS for quite a while, so selecting Absen LED was an easy choice.

MAINTAINING STANDARDS

AV: Apart from partnering with an Australian distributor of LED, is the idea to start standardising?

Glenn Rayner: Yes, that’s the key. A one-stop shop makes servicing so much easier. We’re a large hospitality group with a comparatively small AV maintenance team. When you’ve got similar product coming from different suppliers it gets tricky keeping it all going. Most of our other AV systems are now standardised so it made sense to standardise on our LED product.

AV: Did you have any horror stories from sourcing LED directly from China?

Glenn Rayner: We were mostly lucky. There was one time we bought 100 panels of LED and five or six were from a different batch – it was really obvious, and it took quite a lot of work to fix. But for the most part, we didn’t have too many issues.

In fact, I wouldn’t even say the support we got was particularly bad, but once you get past that two- or three-year mark, the manufacturer has moved on to new products and not necessarily supporting what you have anymore. It becomes more challenging to get parts. Having a local supplier with strong relationships in China is crucial for us going forward.

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A one-stop shop makes servicing so much easier. We’re a large hospitality group with a comparatively small AV maintenance team

LONGEVITY

AV: You’ve been a day in/day out user of LED for a while. What sort of lifespan can you expect?

Glenn Rayner: About 10 years, if you look after it – especially for permanent installations. As an example, we’ve got a LED screen at The Newport that went in around 2018. It’s got a handful of dead pixels and we’ve replaced a couple of bits and pieces, but overall it’s been solid. Where we’ve had more issues is with the touring product in nightclubs. We’re not moving the screens constantly, but at least twice a year we rejig the configuration, and through wear and tear you end up with some damage.

GOOD SPORTS

AV: Tell us about the latest installations?

Glenn Rayner: We decided to do both The Beresford and The Vic on the Park at the same time, in time for the sports season this year. Pixel pitch is the key number – making sure the viewing experience meets expectations. We knew we needed 2.5mm pitch, decent brightness for outdoors, fully IP-rated, and a proven product. That’s why we chose the Absen AW Series.

AV: What’s been the response?

Glenn Rayner: The improvement in guest experience has been huge. People crowding around 65-inch TVs is never ideal for a big match, but now they can sit comfortably in a large beer garden and watch games on a proper screen. Patrons love it. The Beresford has a very diverse clientele – people from all walks of life – it’s a really good community pub. This has been a real value add: come down, meet your mates, have a beer, watch the footy. It’s a big hit.

Merivale: merivale.com

LED SUPPORT

NAS has turned up the heat on its LED business, taking on Absen Brand Manager Tommy Blum to lead the charge with the Absen product.

Tommy Blum: Local distribution is important. Everyone’s heard about some of the horror stories that go along with buying direct, while partnering with a trusted local distributor helps protect your investment and your rights as a consumer. That’s number one.

Then there are the service aspects: training, commissioning, screen repairs, optimisation of performance over time, and design assistance.

Often manufacturers want to push a product because they’ve got stock to clear, but it might not be the right product for the scenario. By having someone in the middle between the manufacturer and the project, you can avoid pitfalls like that.

That’s a big part of my role at NAS. Our philosophy is to put the right product in the right place – not just the cheapest deal or what makes us the best margin. We want to be proud of the jobs we deliver, because it sustains the NAS brand long-term.

NAS is known best as an audio distributor and has done well with the d&b brand. We want to do the same with Absen. It’s interesting that many audio integrators are moving into LED, and they need support. We give them the confidence that we’ll be behind them – helping commission, teaching them how to install and maintain. That’s not something you’re guaranteed to get if you go directly to China. With NAS, especially if you’ve worked with us before, you know what you’ll get that level of support.

NAS: nas.solutions

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