Meet the Authors
PeerSpectives – A Blog by Peerless-AV®
John Potts
President, Peerless-AV
John Potts joined Peerless Industries in 1995 where he held multiple management positions before being appointed president of the renamed Peerless-AV in 2012. In the intervening 17 years, he played pivotal roles in growing the business from fewer than 100 employees to more than 500, spearheading various projects to enhance quality and customer service, and expanding the company’s legacy audiovisual mount business to include new technology focusing on digital content delivery.
Potts’ career at Peerless-AV has included such diverse positions as paint line supervisor, production manager, director of manufacturing, vice president of operations, vice president of customer relations and senior vice president. Major contributions in those posts included developing training processes and procedures to strengthen the company’s customer care department, overseeing three moves that have tripled the combined headquarters/plant space from 110,000 to 330,000 square feet, heading an overseas manufacturing initiative in 2005, returning all production to the U.S. in 2010 and 2011 and serving on both the product committee and executive team to guide business growth.
Potts has also represented Peerless-AV in multiple capacities in the community, including serving on the Workers Compensation Trust Board of Illinois for five years, as treasurer of the White Oaks Industrial Park in Aurora for two years and as company liaison to the Naperville Soccer Association.
Before joining Peerless-AV, Potts served as plant manager, sales manager and vice president of MEM Corporation, a tool and die maker for injection molding. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Saint Xavier University in Chicago.
Nick Belcore
Executive VP, Peerless-AV
As Executive Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing at Peerless-AV, Nick Belcore is directly responsible for providing a global vision and strategy for growth across the entire global organization. In this role, Belcore also manages the North American, Mexico, and UK Customer Experience Teams, which include Customer Care, Marketing, and Sales.
Prior to his current position, Belcore served as Executive Vice President, where he was responsible for all Sales and Business Development initiatives generated from the company’s worldwide headquarters. Before that role, Belcore operated as Vice President of North American Sales, where he led the Sales and Business Development teams responsible for the Americas.
Drawing on more than 20 years of sales and management experience, Belcore has represented products and brands generating revenue in the hundreds of millions of dollars. He has worked with multiple Fortune 500 companies, supporting product launches for several “best in category” products.
A qualified expert on Digital Signage, his team has led merchandising, display and logistical efforts for a number of home center chains, including Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target, Rite Aid and many others.
Belcore has earned numerous national sales achievement awards for excellence throughout his career and is also a Digital Signage Certified Expert (DSCE). He completed his undergraduate work at Drake University.
Todd Mares
Director of Emerging Technologies, Peerless-AV
As Director of Emerging Technologies, Todd Mares leads Peerless-AV’s Emerging Technology division. In this role, he is responsible for identifying new technologies to complement Peerless-AV’s current offerings and showcase the company’s expertise over its competitors. Mares specifically focuses on wireless devices, technology requirements for TVs and displays, and touch applications. In addition, Mares provides technical training and development to the Customer Care team.
Mares joined Peerless-AV as an application field engineer in 2011 after a decade of installation and integration work for cable TV and specialty audiovisual and electronic solution companies. In 2014, he was promoted to Senior Application Field Engineer/Technology Consultant, where he tested and deployed Peerless-AV’s display/TV and kiosk solutions. He also worked directly with Peerless-AV customers to solve site-specific implementation and integration challenges and provide direct support for these solutions.
Mares previously worked as Senior Project Manager at Vivid Systems, where he managed custom electronics and audio systems installations, including home theater, whole house AV, lighting control and security systems for residential and commercial customers. His experience also includes positions as Lead Integrator at KM Technologies, a Vivid Systems predecessor; and as an independent contractor with two cable companies.
Mares is CEDIA Certified, CTS Certified, AMX Designer/Installer Certified, ISF Certified, THX Certified, and DSEG Certified. He earned a Bachelor of Natural Sciences from Colorado State University.
Brian McClimans
Vice President of Sales for North America and APAC, Peerless-AV
Brian McClimans serves as Vice President of Sales for North America and APAC at Peerless-AV. In his current role, McClimans is responsible for establishing new markets, developing new products and managing strategic relationships for Peerless-AV throughout North America, South America, EMEA, and Mexico.
McClimans began his career at Peerless-AV in the Customer Care Department in 1992. Since that time, he has held various roles including Outside District Sales Manager, Head of West Coast Sales, and Head of the OEM Group. From 2002 to 2006, McClimans held the position of Director of Business Development. He was then promoted to Managing Director of Business Development and had held that role until 2013, when he was named Vice President of Global Business Development.
McClimans possesses specific market knowledge in education, fast casual, quick service restaurants, fashion/electronic retail, hospitality, healthcare and various other digital signage markets.
With more than 20 years of experience in the audiovisual manufacturing and distribution industry, McClimans has played a key role in the development and implementation of numerous national digital signage projects including video wall, menu-board and interactive kiosk solutions. He frequently speaks at industry conferences including InfoComm and the Digital Signage Expo.
McClimans was nominated to the Board of Directors for the Digital Signage Federation in 2013. He has also been a member of the Stadium Managers Association, the Digital Screen Media Association, and the Society of Information Displays. McClimans holds a Bachelor of Arts from Illinois State University, where he studied Economics and Marketing.
Earl Naegele
Managing Director of Commercial Sales, Peerless-AV
As Managing Director of Commercial Sales, Earl Naegele is responsible for the management of Peerless-AV’s National Accounts and Pro AV Sales teams. As the primary point on contact for all Commercial Sales at Peerless-AV, his core mission is to manage and streamline the sales efforts to key customers.
Prior to his current position, Naegele served as Director of Professional AV Sales, where he oversaw the Pro AV Sales division, including managing key relationships with Peerless-AV’s largest Pro AV customers, collaborating on Business Development strategies, and originating vertical market programs.
Naegele has extensive award-winning experience in the audio-visual industry and is one of the original founders of AVAD. He brings a unique background to Peerless-AV, having worked in every role across the AV supply chain, from retail/wholesale sales to rep/distribution principal to strategy consultant.
Previous to Peerless-AV, Naegele served as the National Sales Manager at Skywalker, where he developed a hybrid OEM/Tier One vendor strategy and purchasing programs for domestic suppliers, in addition to directly overseeing the entire sales team.
Naegele has a BA from Kansas State University in Computer Engineering. Outside of work, he enjoys spending time with his family, golfing, and fitness.
Rob Meiner
Technical Sales Engineer, Peerless-AV
At Peerless-AV, Rob Meiner oversees the technical sales engineering department, ensuring the team meets goals that contribute to the overall success of Peerless-AV.
Meiner regularly works closely with Sales, Customer Care, Design, Manufacturing, Purchasing, and Marketing to analyze market trends to create and implement strategic product plans comprised of lifecycle management, product roadmaps, and competitive pricing. Meiner also serves as a key customer liaison for projects that include dvLED and LCD video wall mounts, custom kiosks, and outdoor audio visual solutions.
With a with more than 10 years at Peerless-AV, Meiner previously served as a Kiosk Business Unit Manager and Product Manager for Standard Products. Throughout his career, he has held positions focusing on Product and Research Management, Business Development, and Marketing.
Meiner received a Master’s Degree from Roosevelt University and a Bachelor of Business from Western Illinois University. He is a DSCE Digital Signage Certified Expert, CPM Certified Product Manager, CTS Certified Technology Specialty and currently working to become CTS-D certified.
Megan Zeller
Sr. Director, Business Development, Peerless-AV
As Sr. Director of Business Development, Megan Zeller leads Peerless-AV’s dvLED video wall systems, integrated kiosks, and outdoor AV sales initiatives in the hospitality and gaming verticals. In this role, she is responsible for helping her clients develop brand standards that are representative of the specific style and quality of the company.
Zeller brings over a decade of experience in the service industry to her position at Peerless-AV. Prior to joining the company, she worked for Daytona International Speedway, where she supported the $400 million DAYTONA Rising project, a two year redevelopment plan. In this role, she focused on hospitality and partnership sales for the speedway.
Before that, Zeller managed hospitality for a premier sports car racing series where she coordinated catering, meeting planning, hotel accommodations, and travel negotiation. Zeller has also held positions in advertising.
Zeller holds a Bachelor of Science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in Sport Business from Saint Leo University.
