Simon Needle joins 3LR Lighting

Specialist manufacturer representative 3LR Lighting has announced Simon Needle as its newly appointed Director of Special Projects.

Needle, well-known throughout the global lighting industry from his varied career including his former role as International Projects Director for White Light, begins his new role at 3LR Lighting with immediate effect.

Founded in 2019 by Matt Lloyd, 3LR is an architectural manufacturer representative working closely with ETC, Studio Due and Schnick Schnack Systems and in Film & Broadcast lighting with Sumolight, offering expert advice on lighting and control for auditoriums, cruise ships, concert halls, theatres and themed environments plus television and film.

Lloyd comments, “Being able to welcome Simon to 3LR is a huge deal for me personally and for the company as a whole. I’ve known him for a long time and admired his contributions to so many shows and projects over the years. He will be an enormous asset to our business, and I am beyond delighted that he is joining us.”

Simon has been a prominent figure in the lighting world for over 30 years. A graduate of Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, he worked at the Piccadilly Theatre in London’s West End before starting his own lighting company, Electrolite Entertainment Services (along with John Hastie, later a co-founder of Stage Technologies). EES provided stage automation, electrics and production lighting services to a string of large-scale West End and touring theatre productions. His resumé includes such classics as Miss Saigon, Les Miserables, Oliver, Carousel, Oklahoma, We Will Rock You, Mamma Mia!, Sunset Boulevard and many others.

Along the way he also came to know a young Matt Lloyd, at that time with Bristol-based Stage Electrics. He says, “Working together is something we’ve spoken about many times. Matt is a hugely talented, energetic leader and entrepreneur with a great track record, having founded GDS and developed many cutting-edge products that are still very much relevant today.”

After joining White Light full-time in 2008, Simon handled the City of Dreams Project in Macau and the Visitor Centre at Germany’s Nürburgring before taking a seat on White Light’s board in 2011. During his time there he managed many high-value capital projects, ensuring their completion on time, within budget and to the highest standard. He was also involved with the winning and delivery of the single largest project in White Light’s history – the Warner Bros World theme park in Abu Dhabi. “I was extremely proud to become a Director and Shareholder of White Light and help to develop and grow the business to what it has become,” he says. “The huge number of commercial negotiations I was tasked with during my time there was a great learning period for me.”

Recalling the characters who made the company such a success, including his friend Bryan Raven and the founder of White Light, the late John Simpson, he says, “Bryan has always been a stalwart in supporting people when they were in trouble, as was John, of course. Both played a big part in my decision to join the company back in the day.” Of John, he remembers, “When he arrived in the morning, he would always ‘walk the room’ as he called it, and he knew every single person in that building . . . He was always invested in people, and that was the beauty of the man.”

With his own impressive track record, particularly with his experience in the Middle East and Asia, Simon brings to 3LR skills in leadership and strategic management of even the very largest projects, meeting and exceeding the expectations of clients. He says, “At 3LR I’m looking forward to working with like-minded people and helping with the business strategy for growth with the exposure to exciting new markets and the creation of extraordinary experiences all over the world.”

And, he believes, 3LR Lighting has much to offer. “By representing the best manufacturers, 3LR can help clients in all areas of architectural lighting, broadcast lighting, rigging and control, by bringing together our collective expertise,” he says. “I hope to open up their offering to a wider audience and bring new local and international opportunities.”