Entrepreneurs Albert and Berenice Chauvet start the company as a distributor of rope lights. Operating from a warehouse in North Miami Beach, Chauvet quickly becomes a developer and OEM supplier of entertainment lighting for the mobile DJ and club markets. Established market players at the time buy products from Chauvet and resell them under their own brand names.

Chauvet relocates to a 10,000-square-foot office/warehouse in Hollywood, Florida. A short time later, it leases an additional 35,000-square- foot facility nearby to meet the growing demand for its products. By then, the company has gone from an OEM supplier to a Chauvet branded distribution model with a clear vision of entering markets where it can offer forward-thinking and competitive solutions.

It’s Green Thinking: Chauvet pioneers the use of LEDs as its light source of choice. The company’s R&D staff gains a command of developing LED technologies, which accelerates its foray into the professional market as the new technology fills an untapped niche and piques the interest of lighting designers. Chauvet introduces LEDs to the mobile market with the Vue series, the first complete line of LED effects lights.

Chauvet develops the COLORado 3, the company’s first LED wash light aimed at the professional market. Tested on tour with Poison, the product is presented at LDI the following year to rave reviews.

Chauvet becomes the first company to win the LDI Best Big Booth Award for a booth displaying predominantly LED-fitted lights. The winning booth is aptly titled “It’s Green Thinking.” Chauvet is also honored with the 2006 Club World Award for Best LED product and DJ Zone’s Crystal Disc Award.

The ground breaking LED-fitted Min Spot, Chauvet’s first LED moving yoke and a first in the USA, is introduced and is widely acclaimed for heralding a new era in LED mobile lighting. The company is recognized with a 2007 Club World Award, an honor it will receive again the following year.

Chauvet launches ILUMINARC, a brand aimed primarily at the architectural and architainment lighting market. The new brand gains instant recognition when it is selected to light the Eiffel Tower for a 3-month celebration of the iconic structure’s 120-year anniversary.

Chauvet is honored with the Winter Music Conference’s Best LED Product award.

The company opens Chauvet world headquarters in a 75,000-square-foot eco-friendly facility in Sunrise, Florida. It also launches a subsidiary in the United Kingdom. Chauvet branded entertainment lighting products are separated into CHAUVET Professional and CHAUVET DJ. Live Design magazine includes Albert and Berenice Chauvet in its “50 powerful people in Entertainment Technology” list of “leaders who are making an impact on entertainment technology today”.

The CHAUVET Professional logo debuts. CHAUVET DJ still uses the company’s original corporate logo. A year later, a new CHAUVET DJ logo will be introduced, replacing the original Chauvet logo, now strictly used for the corporate entity owning TRUSST, ILUMINARC, CHAUVET DJ and CHAUVET Professional brands. Around this time, COLORado wash lights become a staple of stage and concert productions while the Legend series and Q-series of moving heads gain visibility on high profile tours. The company’s LED VIP video panels and its first battery-operated WELL wash light are introduced. Chauvet wins its second LDI Best Big Booth Award in five years, when its iconic Lighting is Infectious show, programmed by LD Chris Lisle and LD Scott Chmielewski (video) received the honor.

CHAUVET Professional launches the Ovation theatrical lighting line. Its LED-fitted Ovation E-190WW competes successfully in the retrofit market and has a strong following among houses of worship, winning the WFX 2013 New Technology Award for Best LED Fixture. The new line represents a dedicated effort on the part of Chauvet to develop technologies focused on theatrical lighting. Chauvet also launches TRUSST, a line of trussing and presentation accessories for exhibits, events and productions.

The Parnelli Award Indispensable Technology winner, Nexus 4×4, crowns Chauvet’s leadership in pixel-mapping technologies and cements Chauvet’s popularity in live productions on stage and television. ILUMINARC wins a Lightfair International Best Booth Award. Chauvet opens a California Branch to serve the US west coast. Chauvet establishes a full-service subsidiary and distribution center in Mexico.

The groundbreaking Rogue series of moving head is introduced by CHAUVET Professional. ILUMINARC debuts Colorist wash lights. CHAUVET DJ wins MMR Lighting Line of the year and MSR Dealer Choice Award. Berenice Chauvet is honored with a DJ Zone Lifetime Achievement Award.

A second European distribution center is opened by Chauvet in Belgium. CHAUVET Professional pioneers the Ovation-D LED ellipsoidal and Fresnel that can detect and automatically configure themselves for control via DMX or traditional dimming systems. CHAUVET DJ continues its dominance as the market leader, becoming the first lighting company to win the MMR DJ Line of the Year Award. CHAUVET DJ also wins the MMR Lighting Line of the Year, an MSR Dealer Choice Award and a NAMM Milestone Award.

The Maverick series from CHAUVET Professional launches and pushes the limits of design and technology to the next level for large scale applications. The Ovation E-260WW ellipsoidal shines as the first LED ellipsoidal with an output that surpasses a 750 W tungsten source’s and as Worship Facilities Magazine and Expo’s “New Product Awards” winner in the Best LED Fixture category. The IP version, Ovation E-260WW IP, debuts as the first indoor/outdoor LED ellipsoidal.

CHAUVET DJ proudly takes home two awards from the 23rd Annual MMR Dealer’s Choice Award – Lighting Line of the Year for 2016 and DJ Line of the Year. CHAUVET DJ’s GigBAR 2 is awarded the Music & Sound Retailer Award for Best Lighting Product of the Year.

Chauvet acquires ChamSys Ltd, the maker of the MagicQ industry standard controllers.

Chauvet Opens French Subsidiary. View More
Chauvet Expands Into Germany. View More