07 Sep Nightscaping A Hobby Gone “Out of Control”
By Mike Gambino
It has not been a well kept secret that over the past few years Loran Nightscaping the originator of 12 volt landscape lighting has been on the brink of going out of business. In fact they were briefly out of business for a few months about 4 years ago or so. I started my career using their products in 1990. Used it exclusively for over 10 years and formed a very close relationship with the owner and founder William (Bill) J. Locklin. In fact he used to refer to me as his son.
Over the past few weeks the rumors started circulating again that they were not filling orders, not answering their phones and business was on hold until a sale to a group with financial backing was completed. Allegedly the buyers backed out at the eleventh hour and yesterday I received a text from a very reliable source that Nightscaping had in fact closed their doors and gone permanently out of business. In addition they had sold their brand name to an internet retailer and the deal is supposed to be finalized and announced this coming Monday. Hopefully this is not true. I haven’t had any business dealings with Nightscaping for a very long time especially after Bill passed away. I do still service several of the systems that I had installed their product on properties in the distant past. Regardless there is still a sentimental side of me that isn’t pleased to see this company go. Especially to hear that the brand name was sold to a retailer that I feel is less than worthy of this established and historical name.
I have reprinted below a summary of how Nightscaping started in 1959 that is taken from their website.
Before there was Nightscaping® Bill Locklin was a Redlands, California electrical contractor who specialized in agricultural electrical services and maintenance. In his spare time he would experiment with 12-volt lighting powered by automobile batteries and headlight lamps to see what kind of effects could be created with this more efficient light source. This hobby earned him a call from a client who wanted outdoor landscape lighting for his home. Locklin learned this client was expecting some very special guests and the lighting had to be completed before their arrival.
Locklin immediately went to work devising a plan. He began designing inconspicuous outdoor fixtures from mayonnaise jars, painted coffee and fruit juice cans, automobile lamps and 12-volt batteries. He improvised and experimented. He invented low-voltage landscape lighting and coined his lighting motto, “See the effect and not the source.”
The client was so impressed by the professional lighting system Locklin had provided on such short notice he invited Locklin to meet his special guests, President Eisenhower and his wife, First Lady Maime Eisenhower. This chance meeting resulted in another lighting job for Locklin. The president himself wanted a lighting installation at his vacation retreat for an upcoming event.
The installation for Eisenhower was such a success that the politicians, foreign dignitaries and social elites who attended the event wanted this kind of lighting for their homes. Thus Nightscaping®, Locklin’s landscape lighting manufacturing company, was born.
The success of his hobby that as he says, “got out of hand,” motivated Locklin to further his industry and craft. He continued doing lighting installations for everyone from the Sultan of Brunei, the CEO of Honda Motors, and all of the Mrs. Joneses living on your street U.S.A. As others in his industry began to more fully understand the lighting ideas, moreover the business he pioneered, competition began to infiltrate his market. Locklin was inspired. His creation that had sprung forth from the bottom of a coffee can was revolutionizing the landscaping industry.
Today Nightscaping® is still located in Redlands, California and is still focused on the future with competitors still playing catch up. New Nightscaping® innovations like LED bulbs and stainless steel fixtures are paving the way into the future for low voltage outdoor lighting. For fifty years now Nightscaping® has been solely focused on providing the best, most dependable, technically superior, presidential quality outdoor lighting systems to customers across the globe.
Nightscaping’s® ability to see beyond the here and now, the emphasis that’s put on continual research, development and innovation, and the unfailing commitment Nightscaping® has toward providing the industry’s most reputable service, have kept Nightscaping’s® customers on the absolute cutting edge of the outdoor lighting business.
Customers world-wide recognize Nightscaping® as the Professional Outdoor Lighting brand they know and trust. Today, the Nightscaping® brand stands for quality, dependable professional outdoor lighting. Just as it did when we first opened our doors in 1959.
Here is a letter Bill Locklin himself wrote upon the release of a new technical manual that was printed.
To my Friends In The Outdoor Lighting Industry:
I am extremely proud to present you with the Nightscaping® Technical Manual.
By definition a Handbook is a collection of useful facts and a guide used to understand how those facts are beneficial to the individual reader.
This Technical Manual certainly fits that criteria. It is the complete collection of data and equipment compiled by Nightscaping® over our illustrious 40 plus year history. And, more importantly, it is your guide to success in the low voltage outdoor lighting industry.
The information presented here has not been coined by some slick ad agency. The photos, drawings, composition and technical information contained have all been developed in house by your dedicated Nightscaping® staff.
These pages are more than product announcements. They are your guide to the industry’s most comprehensive collection of professional outdoor lighting tools. Each of which has been tested and proven by leading lighting Designers, Contractors and Architects from all parts of our world.
This Technical Manual/Handbook is not mine. It belongs to the dedicated men and women working in the field who have built the 12 volt outdoor lighting industry. This Handbook is a diary. It is a record of my lifetime spent working with and for those Contractors, Architects and Designers.
The evolution of the light source has played a great part in the development of the fixtures found in this Technical Manual. However, the most fundamental attribute with regard to the design of Nightscaping® equipment has been the one-on-one partnerships we have with those of you working in the field.
It would be wrong of me to take full credit for everything you find in this Handbook. The physical shape of fixtures, the many and varied modifications available, and the evolution of our Powercenter™ transformer are the result of feedback Nightscaping® has received from practicing Contractors and Architects. These designs in many cases have been specific requests made by front line installers that we have subsequently introduced into our product line.
Due to this production and design philosophy, Nightscaping® is a true manufacturer, not some company concerned simply with assembling offshore stampings. We transform full sheets of copper and stainless steel into hand crafted, safe operating landscape lighting fixtures on a daily basis. Our transformer specialists routinely test and retest every handmade Nightscaping® Powercenter™ we produce to guarantee it lives up to your expectations. These are only a few examples of how our staff of dedicated mechanics and customer service professionals practice “Mass Customization” manufacturing. These production practices give Nightscaping® the ability to produce the finest quality, most specialized equipment or tools available anywhere in the outdoor lighting industry.
This would not be the case if it weren’t for the tireless efforts of our loyal customers. Nightscaping® is where we are today thanks to them. We offer the industry’s most diverse line of fixtures and transformers because of them. Our success and ability to stay at the forefront of outdoor lighting technology for more than four decades is because of them. For that I thank you.
I am especially indebted to the Contractors involved in our original TEC (Test Evaluate Communicate) team, the professional and knowledgeable members of our NIGHTchat email information exchange, our elite “Advisory Council” and my much appreciated “Friends of Bill” group. The Handbook you are holding would not exist without them.
I would like to dedicate this 40 plus year edition of the Nightscaping® Technical Manual to these aforementioned individuals (you know who you are), my family of faithful Nightscaping® Employee Partners, and to you, the future of the outdoor lighting industry. May it serve you well.
Personal regards,
Bill Locklin
President
If the rumors are true then Goodbye Loran Nightscaping. Sad to see you go. You may be gone (like Bill) but never forgotten and your products still live on in many properties across the country and world.
This landscape lighting blog is published by Mike Gambino of Gambino landscape lighting inc. all rights reserved. Mike is a professional landscape lighting system designer/ builder and has been designing, installing and maintaining landscape lighting systems for more than 20 years. Mike resides in the Los Angeles area with his wife and 2 sons. To visit his website go to www.gambinolighting.com . To inquire about hiring Mike please click here .
Blog articles may be published with permission on other websites without editing or removing links.
Mark Carlson
Posted at 17:11h, 07 SeptemberA sad day in landscape low voltage lighting indeed. Although, I was never a big fan of Nightscaping products, I do respect the fact that Bill Locklin was the first to provide 12-volt lighting systems to the masses. It really is a shame to see such a giant and historical figure/company go. It is especially shameful that it is going to be used for the benefits or whatever of the likes of this “importer” company will to knock-off and run with others ideas. These kind of companies are ‘bottom feeders’ and they are causing the devaluation of the lighting industry….all for pure profit gain and no cares about the advancement of professionalism. Sad times!
Mike Gambino
Posted at 11:57h, 09 SeptemberHopefully there will be an official word either way to confirm or deny the status of the company and their brand name. It’s kind of odd that there has been no official statement, response or anything from a company that
has been in business for over 50 years.
Sandy
Posted at 23:51h, 09 OctoberI hate to say this but Nightscaping was dead the first time they closed their doors. Why you asked, several reasons:
1. Connie was one of the reasons she did not treat clients equally. Friends done business with Friends. NOT.
2. They let key personal go the first round and did not re-hire them
3. poor marketing planning, their website really sucked and so did their brochures.
4. outdated fixtures and if there were any new designs they ugly. LED was the key.
g salm
Posted at 01:07h, 12 NovemberWe were a supplier of “Nightscaping” and are owed $2.9K. Since we are a small company this loss is not insignificant to us. If there are any assets – we hope to recoup some of that money. Does anyone know what the Bankruptcy court will do to satisfy the various businesses?
We know that “Nightscaping” owes salaries and wages to their employees also and they will most likely get satisfied first.
Steve Bell
Posted at 21:33h, 19 NovemberI worked with Al Dalen, Seng Tee, and Bill Locklin from 1981 to 1986, as lead in the metal shop. I learned so much there. It is sad to hear that these wonderful lights won’t be made in the old ways of that obscure factory at the corner of Colton and Wabash. I think about my days there as a younger guy, cutting, bending, soldering, spot welding, rolling, smelting, grinding, all the different materials used to make these exceptional lamps. Look at the catalog. There is no equal to Nightscaping. Use my full name if you publish. I’m proud to have been a small part of Nightscaping by Loran.
Mike Gambino
Posted at 00:55h, 20 NovemberSteve nice to hear you have fond memories. Respectfully I think you’ve been out of the game too long to make the statement that there was no equal to Nightscaping. Much has changed in the industry since you were spinning Footliter tops for them some 30 years ago. True they were number 1 in low voltage landscape lighting before their competition caught up and far surpassed them which would be about 30 years ago now.
Bill had a huge ego and for years would not admit that their was some major flaws in their protective powder coat finish on their aluminum and steel fixtures. I saw what was happening and steered clear of that stuff and used only copper and brass as I still do today so I had no problems. However most others were not willing to pay the additional cost for the premium material and it cost Bill millions of dollars in replacement product and badly damaged their reputation. To his credit he replaced the stuff unconditionally never accepting responsibility though.I don’t know how many people that they told they had a bad run to, they were the victim of industrial sabotage by an employee, they never had seen this happen before etc. However when those replacements had to be replaced more than once I might add it became apparent those excuses had no validity.
Heidi
Posted at 12:21h, 29 NovemberWe own lights from nightscaping. We sent one in to be repaired and they closed the business( without any knowledge to us). They never returned our light and now we have to replace it. Any ideas who makes the same lights now?
Karen F
Posted at 12:10h, 17 OctoberI too ,weas an employee long ago at Nightscaping and everything you have said Mike Gambino is true.
It was a great p[lace for me to have worked and learned. I had the privlage to be at the forefront of their design department with Bob Wright as my supervisor/mentor/teacher. I learned a lot and was treated very well. It is a shame to hear of the way this company went out. However you are so correct that Bill had an ego that was too big for his company. He was stubborn and close minded when it came to innovation and new technologies. He never did learn how to step back and let people lead in areas they were compitent in.
Thanks for the nice write up about the place. It was accurate fair and truthful.
Karen
Mike Gambino
Posted at 16:06h, 17 OctoberThank you for sharing Karen. I often wonder what could have become of the company had Bill surrounded himself with those who could have carried on his legacy after he was gone instead he hired yes men who told him what he wanted to hear. A month does not pass that I do not get a phone call or an e-mail from a do it yourselfer homeowner looking for parts who Nightscaping sold product directly to. It is apparent that they had done quite a bit of this due to the volume of contacts I have received.
For the record I do have a significant amount of new and used Nightscaping stock in my shop which I have no interest in selling. I guess I will hold onto it for posterity.
The thing about the manufacturer direct sales to the do it yourself market is that it was done on the sly and totally undermined all of what Bill and Nightscaping was supposed to be about and stood for.
Their policy was not to sell directly to contractors but through their network of distributors. But I even found out that they were not true to their distributor partners either as they had some select few contractors who they sold direct to as well. So they not only two timed their contractor customers but their distributor customers as well. With this kind of deception going on it was only a matter of time before it all came crashing down on them.
To emphasize how hypocritical their actions were, Bill used to say how it was easier to burn a building down with 12 volts then it was with 120 volt current because of the higher amperage traveling through the wire with low voltage lighting. His message was that only his transformer was safe but also the installer should know what they were doing and he even invested heavily in contractor training. Unfortunately his safety message loses its bite when he’s selling product to do it yourself homeowners with zero experience sight unseen over the phone or internet (even providing free design plans). It becomes apparent his educational “Nightscaping University” was more to build product loyalty than to make sure those installing his products were properly trained and operating with safe and sound electrical practices.
Another quote from Bill- “The property owner is going to expect that their Nightscaping system is going to be expensive. Do not disappoint them.”- The disappointment turned out to be in the realization that Nightscaping and Bill failed to practice what they preached !
Gary Gibson
Posted at 13:56h, 30 AprilHi Mike,
I want to take a minute to set the record on the “originator” of 12 volt landscape lighting. His name was Don Lewis and he owned a company called Montrose Lighting in Montrose CA. Don was an avator and owned several planes and knew about low voltage (not 12 volt) lighting that was used in the aviation industry and he also owned the lighting store and when approached by the Los Angeles Breakfast Club regarding a portable decorative lighting system for a big movable display they wanted to build he had to contact the Los Angeles Building Inspector and Fire Dept. to see what could be used. He was told he could fly completely under the radar if he used 12 volt bulbs with class 2 transformers. For the fixtures themselves he went to a minute-maid juice canning plant in Sun Valley CA and purchased the raw metal cans. These are the same cans that Mr. Lewis later sold to Bill Locklin when he started up his Nightscaping business.
After building the Breakfast Club’s lighting set-up he decided to design more low voltage fixtures for garden use and when he had a handful of designs he built some point of purchase displays and loaded them into a U-Haul trailor and drove to many lighting contractors and distributors to show the many uses and ease of installation…and safety of a low-voltage landscape lighting system for home and hotel. The final bit of business in his spiel was to take a pitcher of water and pour some into one of his fixtures and take a drink while the fixture was turned on.
The business took off and he soon branched into interior low voltage which would find its way into some of the most fashionable hotels in the USA and the soon-to-open Disneyland theme park and hotel. He called the company MLP for Montrose Lighting Products and because the fixtures were small the were given the name “wee mac” The fixtures were basically a mounting plate with exposed bulb inside a threaded tube and there were a variety of decorative heads that could be attached. The top floor restaurant at the hotel had fixtures that made a star pattern on the ceiling and the Disney designers adjusted the fixtures by screwing or unscrewing the head to make each star larger or smaller on the ceiling. The first fixtures ran on an 89K bulb and inside each fixture was a sticker that read ‘send $1.49 and your address and we will send you 3 replacement bulbs.
As the landscape end of the business grew rapidly Mr. Lewis needed some capital so he took on 3 investors. Shortly after his salesman secretly turned over the designs to Sunbeam Co. (who then started Malibu Lighting) his investors found a big corporation who wanted to buy MLP so they out-voted Lewis and the company was sold. I forget who that company was but they later sold it to Hadco.
He started another company with much the same product called ALESCO which he later sold to Sylvan Designs.
I went to work for Don in 1989. He had long since left the lighting business to his brother and was doing custom furniture when his brother unexpedly died. Shortly after I was hired we went to a light fair at the Los Angeles Convention Center. I knew almost nothing about Don Lewis other than he had been a fixture in the neighborhood since the 1930s. At the light fair many people would come up and say hello to him and ask if he ever thought his little 12 volt idea would have become such an industry standard. I had no idea what they were talking about so I asked some of them and we all had a drink and they and Don told me the story….and then some of the old-timers started grumbling because Nightscaping was advertizing that they were the originators of low-voltage landscape lighting and said “Hell…Don was selling him the orange juice cans for years before he started his Nightscaping business.”. I asked Don all about this stuff at a later time and he said it was true. He also had many great stories from back in the early days of low-voltage lighting and how they would customize various installations to meet specific needs with whatever materials they could find.
Ahh…the good old days.
I haven’t seen Don or his lovely wife Raymonde in 20 years and I’m not too sure he is still alive but I thought I woluld grace your page with the story regardint the true originator of Low-Voltage landscape lighting, Don Lewis.