Baker & Taylor Entertainment, a national distributor of
prerecorded entertainment software and related accessories, is celebrating the 25th
Anniversary of its one stop music distribution division, which has operated continuously
since 1973.
Founded by pioneer wholesaler Noel Gimbel in the 1970s as a Midwest regional one stop,
Baker & Taylor Music was originally known as Sound Unlimited.
With the opening of a second stocking warehouse in Denver, Colorado, in the early
1980s, Sound Unlimited became a national software distributor, renamed Sound Video
Unlimited. In 1986, Gimbel sold Sound Video to W.R. Grace and Co., who combined the
company with video distributor VTR to form Baker & Taylor Video, a national full-line
distributor. Five years later, W.R. Grace sold the company to the Carlyle Investment
Group, which renamed the new venture Baker & Taylor Entertainment, its present
incarnation.
Now an integral part of Baker & Taylor Entertainment, the Audio Division continues
to grow as a national music distributor, recently adding tens of thousands of titles to
emphasize its deep music catalog, responsive service, expansion of its Independent and
Urban retail business, and the establishment of Internet provider relationships. Sounds
like a plan for another 25 years of success. Congratulations.
