Since it was established back in 1977 by Rick Wilson and Harold Berlinski, and
joined three years later by Karen Cornacchia, the company has gone from strength
to strength to become a global leader in its field of pyrotechnics and special effects.
In those earliest days Le Maitre was producing mirror balls, as well as the Pea
Souper dry ice machine, the first products in its renowned PyroFlash range and the
2-way controller, products that are all still going strong today. The company quickly
grew and in 1980 the pyrotechnics factory in Peterborough was officially opened.
Fast forward 40 years and today the product range has grown to include over 1,500
state-of-the-art products. PyroFlash was joined by the ProStage II range, and more
recently the Virtually Smokeless products with their extremely intense colours. All
products have always been manufactured in the UK, all in full compliance with
industry regulations.
As Wilson says, “We’re delighted to be celebrating our 40th year in business and
although it’s nice to take stock and look back at what we’ve achieved we’re excited
about what’s still to come. We are constantly striving for better, cleaner products
that allow spectators and audiences across the world to see our effects at their very
best, and we have some exciting developments with large scale pyrotechnics later
this year. To simplify things for users we have also added smart controls to our
most popular smoke and haze machines, enabling the user to set-up, control and
diagnose errors quickly and easily from their mobile phone or tablet.’
Le Maitre Events, spearheaded by Karen Cornacchia, continues to thrive, designing,
supplying and firing pyro and effects for numerous tours, festivals, stage shows, TV
and film productions and corporate events across the UK and Europe.
“All in all, things are looking good for the future of Le Maitre,’ says Cornacchia. “We
have an established international distributor network, an outstanding presence in
the European market, and we have a strong team of dedicated staff, many of whom
have been with us for over 25 years. The American market continues to expand
through Le Maitre USA, LLC and we are just starting to manufacture products in a
new site in Missouri. We are all looking forward to many more exciting times
ahead.’