Crossover Marketing

Crossover in its technical form relates to the electrical components designed to allow smooth transition points throughout the frequency range of sound…

 

Crossover as a company name represents the ability to deliver the best products, technologies, and business practices. We will use these foundation principles to provide smooth transition points throughout the frequency range of partnerships between manufacturers and their dealers.

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Get The Best Advice

Having held leadership positions for large corporations, our broad experience gives us an opportunity to claim a very unique place in the market.

Think of us as a rep partner that can advise on any facet of the business. Whether it’s account development or merchandising…you can always trust that Crossover has you covered.

Rob Sutton

Rob has literally grown up in the business. The path he took wasn’t easy, but a blessing nonetheless as it gave him an overall understanding of the business that few ever realize.

Rob Sutton

Rob has literally grown up in the business. The son of a retail salesperson, his career started in a Silo store warehouse unloading trucks and stocking shelves just one week out of high school. The path he took wasn’t easy, but a blessing nonetheless as it gave him an overall understanding of the business that few ever realize.

 

That understanding includes managing a 12V Distributor, five retail stores, a small rep firm, and working in merchandising design with heavyweights like Best Buy and Walmart before the age of thirty.

 

Regional Sales Management with Jensen led to starting the Dual brand with colleagues. Rob also took on a new role in Product Management with Dual. In that position, he brought products to market and worked with large retail partners on private-label and branded products. He once left a Best Buy meeting and flew directly to China, then dumped several different parts on a table to find a better cosmetic. Two days later he and his team had designed the top-selling model Dual has ever built.

 

Rob joined Kenwood in 2007 as the Western Regional Sales manager. A promotion to Director of Sales soon followed, along with taking the company to the number one market share position. Along the way, Rob helped some close dealer friends imagine, create, and launch the MESA buying group which is now a powerhouse in the industry. In June of 2016, his team set sales records that still stand at Kenwood. His carefully crafted programs are known as comprehensive and extremely effective in their scope and scale.

Since 2018 he has been doing what he loves most, managing reps. Having hosted the top dealers in the country on incentive trips for 15 years, Rob already knows your customers and their business very well.

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Paul Pilat

His 20+ year foundation is rooted in a broad set of roles and responsibilities including business development, product marketing, design, sales and marketing and sales training.

Paul Pilat

Paul brings an extensive 40+ year career that spans the technology and consumer electronics market sectors. His 20+ year foundation in consumer electronics products is rooted in a broad set of roles and responsibilities including business development, product marketing, design, sales and marketing and sales training and has held critical positions within such notable companies as Acoustic Research, Monster Cable, Dday Sequerra, MTI and RCA.

 

Beyond the CE industry Paul worked the last 24 years for Intel in various technology sectors, including Intel Labs where he focused on analyzing emerging technologies and developing successful strategic partner diffusion paths that accelerated industry adoption. His experience in designing and promoting solutions for a variety of market segments including Transportation, supply chain, logistics, Interactive television, Consumer segment products, IOTG, connected Healthcare and networking high performance connectivity will serve him well in helping Crossover Marketing support their dealers and manufacterurs to optimize their goals and business objectives.

 

Paul was nominated into ATAS (Academy of Television Arts and Sciences) for his work in the formation of Emmy Awards recognizing excellence in interactive Media categories. Based on his contributions in developing an industry consortium for the promotion of Interactive Television he is a voting member with the privelege to attend the annual Emmys award event.

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Good people with a potent combination of experience, skills, relationships and creativity

We’ve built this organization to take a bold step and reinvent a crucial part of the market that has grown stale…the Independent Rep Company

On A Personal Note

More about the people who will be representing you

Paul is known for his winemaking, especially his Oregon Pinot Noir.

An avid boater who grew up in New England, he also enjoys golfing, cabinet-making, and fishing with his two sons.

Mr. Pilat has a BS degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Massachusetts – Dartmouth.

Paul and Rob met in the mid-nineties while working together in merchandising at MTI, the leader of 12V displays and store design at the time. Their friendship of nearly thirty years is Crossover’s greatest asset.

Rob is a freelance artist, focusing on painting and graphic design. He is very active in youth sports, including coaching his two kids and serving on the board of the local Little League for more than twelve years.

 

Post-COVID, he manages a basketball program for K-8 kids with the local school district.

 

Rob’s favorite activity is concerts, with more than 1,000 live shows attended over the past 35 years. Feeling the energy change in a room full of people through music is what drive that passion for him.

A Full Service Firm

Sam Sutton

Sam Sutton represents the third generation in consumer electronics for the Sutton family. A childhood attending 12V trade shows and past Kenwood trips has given him a unique perspective on the business, and existing relationships with many of your Best Dealers.

 

Before joining Crossover full-time he attended Central Washington University and then worked as a Lab Tech at Absci, a generative AI drug exploration company.

 

In the lead up to the launch he interned inside five preeminent dealers spread throughout the territory to get to know the people who work there and better understand how his role at Crossover will positively impact them in the future.

 

Sam played baseball at a very high level growing up and learned early about the importance of a team mindset and hard work. More recently, he has coached youth baseball on his own since he was sixteen years old, and led our local Little League’s All Star team as manager the past two seasons.

Dealer Development

Rob and Paul will work out of our Portland area offices to conduct in-person account development and drive your business through the entire market.

Manufacturer Consulting

Thorough and efficient reporting on market conditions and dealer needs. We can also advise on nearly all facets of the business.

Territory Growth

New Dealers are crucial for sustainable growth and we will advise smaller retailers on healthy growth strategies.

The Brands That Power Us

We bring you a broad selection of top-tier brands, all renowned for their commitment to delivering exceptional sound and groundbreaking innovation. Leading the way is Pioneer, a world leader in electronics products for the car. You can also immerse yourself in the precision and sound quality of Hertz-Audison, savor the robust performance and value offered by Boss Audio, and explore VOXX Electronics’ cutting-edge technology spanning various categories. This includes DEI’s state-of-the-art security systems and the richly diverse entertainment portfolio from Sirius XM.

Trusted Partnerships

“I met Rob thirty years ago, and have worked closely with him through my time at Al & Ed’s Autosound, The Good Guys, and Car Toys. Rob’s knowledge of the industry is unmatched, and he was always the best rep that called on me. Very professional and well prepared with perspective on my business that even I hadn’t seen. He won five consecutive Vendor of the Year Awards from Car Toys, and they were all well-deserved.

For the past five years we’ve worked together at JVCKenwood, and I can assure two things…his positive energy cannot be denied, and he knows how to drive the business.”
Kelly McDaniel
Senior Manager, Eastern Region Sales at JVC Kenwood
"Not only has Rob's white glove approach directly translated into increased profitability for my organization. Rob uses his expertise to flawlessly follow through from conception to execution. His industry knowledge, focus on sell-through, and proactive promotional strategies are best-in-class."
Jennifer "JQ" Quesada
Senior Merchandising Manager, Car Toys
"As the Executive Director of M.E.S.A. I've worked with Rob Sutton in his different roles at Kenwood USA for the last fourteen years.  It’s been an absolute pleasure working with Rob.  Any time I’ve needed anything, he was always there for me and is a great person to collaborate with and bounce ideas off of.  Not only is Rob a great industry colleague, he is a true friend!"
Ryan Gunter
Executive Director, Mobile Electronics Specialists of America
"As a store owner, and buyer, I was elated to find out Rob Sutton has created a Rep Firm. Why? Because after 37 years, I have learned in this industry to sort the good from the bad. This only comes from action, not words, Rob is one of the good and has never let me down. I can’t wait to work with him."
Blane Hartleb
Outrageous Audio

Let the Numbers Speak

Years of Combined
CE Experience
0
Totaly Brands
We Represent
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Years of Friendship
(Our Foundation)
0

In The Press

Car Sales

Kenwood Veteran Launches Rep Firm

Regarding leaving Kenwood recently, Sutton said, “The people at Kenwood are and will always be family to me. I’ll be forever grateful to Dave Hoag for giving me a chance over fifteen years ago, and I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve all done together over the years.”

 

He said,  “I’m doing this to chase a longtime dream with my mentor and my son, it’s something that I just have to do.”

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UPCOMING PRESS

Pioneer Announcement
Coming Soon...

Car Sales

VOXX Electronics Partners with Crossover Marketing

VOXX Electronics Corporation has named Crossover Marketing as its new manufacturer’s representative firm for the Pacific Northwest market, the company announced.

The firm—founded by Rob Sutton and Paul Pilat, and now joined by Sam Sutton—will be focused on dealer development and innovative marketing strategies to help its partners achieve measurable results and reach their mutual goals, the company said.

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Car Sales

BOSS Audio Selects Crossover Marketing to Drive Next Phase of Growth in the Pacific NW

BOSS Audio, a leading manufacturer of high-quality audio and video products, today announced the hiring of the Crossover Marketing Group, a full-service Manufacturer’s Representative to lead the company’s business objectives in the Pacific Northwest Territory.

BOSS Audio is committed to amplifying its sales growth and improving its position in the highly competitive automotive aftermarket.

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Car Sales

Crossover Marketing Intros Incentive Program

The new Pacific Northwest rep firm, the Crossover Marketing Group, announced a new incentive program, designed to reward dealers who write orders consistently.The rewards program enables buyers to amass ‘Crossover Points,’ for orders placed across all brands sold by the Group. Buyers earn points in increments of $2,500 per order. For example, an order worth $8,000 would win three points.
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Car Sales

Elettromedia Names New Rep

Elettromedia-USA, manufacturer of premium electronics and speaker systems for the automotive, marine, and motorsports aftermarket, announced that it has signed a contract with the
Crossover Marketing Group LLC to represent the Hertz, Audison, and Connection brands in the Pacific Northwest beginning June 1, 2023.


The newly formed Crossover Marketing Group LLC consists of industry veterans Rob Sutton and Paul Pilat
along with Sam Sutton serving in a customer support role.

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Disruptively Consistent
In The Pacific Northwest

Rob and Paul work out of our Portland area offices to conduct in-person account development and drive your business throughout the entire market.

Contact Us Now:

21010 NE 233rd Avenue
Battle Ground WA 98604

Crossover Dealer Suppor:
Rob Sutton:
Paul Pilat:
Sam Sutton:
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