There's magic that comes to life with the flicker of Christmas lights. As the sun sets and darkness blankets everything around, these tiny, twinkling bulbs emerge casting a warm and festive glow. Often, the ordinary is transformed into the extraordinary, and every corner seems to embrace a touch of holiday wonder.
Very few know the wonder of light displays like Ronnie Brown, president of Blachere Illumination in North America. With a client list boasting iconic names like Disney, Sea World, and Hollywood’s Rodeo Drive, Brown has elevated the French-based Blachere into the premier LED lights display company in the United States.
“We can manufacture anything you can think of, but 95% of what we do is Christmas,” explains Brown. “We weld aluminum frames together into the shape of whatever we’re doing. That could be 2-D or 3-D. We then attached the LED lights to that frame. Sometimes we’ll put garland over the top and pull the lights through. It's all handwork. There’s very little automation. It’s very labor intensive.”
Brown, a native of Scotland, got started in the Christmas light industry in the 1980s in the United Kingdom. He started his own company which quickly grew into the biggest distributor for Blachere Illuminations in the UK. Blachere eventually acquired Brown's growing enterprise but retained him as a managing partner, tasking him with expanding their luminous legacy to North America.
The pivotal moment occurred at a Christmas trade show in Germany, where Brown crossed paths with the owners of the James Trogolo Company from Christopher, Illinois, a smaller holiday lighting distributor. The encounter led to Blachere being offered space in a warehouse in Christopher rent-free. The international company made the leap to North America, with Southern Illinois as their basecamp, eventually even purchasing the building from Trogolo’s company. "Southern Illinois is called the heartland for a reason," Brown notes. "It’s practically in the middle of the United States. If we set up in New York, it would have been a fortune, and then it would mean that West Coast customers would have to pay a fortune for shipping. It just made sense."
For two decades, the factory operated seasonally, gearing up for the Christmas rush. However, this year marked a significant shift, with Blachere's business expanding year-round, employing about 20 individuals. "We have a new distributor, and he’s absolutely blown us away by the amount of work that he’s given us," shares Brown. "It has allowed us to work full time. In the past, we didn’t gear up the factory until July and August. This year, we were able to start in January, and we are still working to get orders out in December. It’s taken us 20 years to be an overnight success."
As demand surged, Blachere has explored innovative avenues to fabricate Christmas displays. While aluminum had long been the primary material for frames, the introduction of a 3D printer marked a revolutionary move. "We now use something called Recyprint. That is recycled plastic bottles," reveals Brown. "We buy the granules that have already been recycled. We put that into a 3D printer, and that is now becoming our main product line. It’s reduced our need for aluminum by 80%."
In the midst of this evolution, Blachere Illumination has a commitment to sustainability, introducing a "win-win" scenario. A Southern Illinois business is not only bringing holiday magic to communities but also actively reducing the environmental footprint by repurposing plastic waste. As the sun sets and darkness blankets everything around, the magic of Christmas lights, now intertwined with innovation and eco-conscious practices, continues to illuminate Southern Illinois and beyond, bringing joy to those who have the pleasure of witnessing one of Blachere Illumination's captivating Christmas light displays.
