Brilliant Distributor Case Study: Aartech Canada

How Aartech Canada Powers Canadian Smart Homes

In the connected home industry, distributors often have the clearest view of where the market is heading. They work across multiple trades, technologies and customer segments, seeing firsthand what products create demand, simplify installation and generate recurring opportunities for dealers. In Canada, few companies illustrate this better than Aartech Canada.

Founded in 2002 and headquartered in Oshawa, Aartech is a Canadian-owned distributor specializing in smart home, security, networking and automation technology. What began as a garage-based startup importing hard-to-find automation products has grown into one of Canada’s most respected suppliers to installers, builders, integrators, electricians and technology-focused homeowners. Over more than two decades, Aartech has expanded alongside the connected home market while maintaining a reputation for service, technical expertise and understanding the needs of professionals in the field.

Today, Aartech serves a broad market that includes security installers, low-voltage contractors, custom AV firms, IT providers, home builders, resellers and e-commerce dealers. The company also serves Canadian consumers who prefer purchasing from a domestic supplier with local inventory, Canadian warranty support and easier logistics than importing products from the United States. This combination of B2B and B2C reach gives Aartech a strong position across both professional channels and end-user markets.

According to Jeff Barrett, Aartech’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing, the company’s roots are deeply tied to automation. Founder Robert Mowles originally became involved with early automation products and quickly realized how difficult it was to source components in Canada. “If it’s this hard for me, it must be this hard for other people in Canada,” Jeff explained in describing the founder’s early thinking. That insight led to importing additional inventory for resale, and from that practical beginning Aartech was formed.

As the market evolved, Aartech expanded beyond early home automation into security cameras, access control, intercoms, networking, electrical devices, structured wiring and integrated smart home solutions. Today the company functions as a one-stop distribution partner for professionals designing and installing connected residential, commercial, multi-residential, industrial, and institutional environments. Jeff summarized the breadth of the business simply: “We cover everything electrical, automation, integration, low voltage.”

Among Aartech’s premium smart home offerings is Brilliant Smart Home. For Aartech, Brilliant is not simply another product line. Jeff describes it as a strategic connector across multiple categories and trades. “Brilliant plays a really unique role,” he said. “It’s not just a product, it’s like a connector across multiple categories. So electrical meets automation, camera installers meet automation.”

This positioning is especially valuable because it helps contractors naturally expand their businesses. Electricians can move into lighting control and smart home upgrades. Security installers can bridge into doorbells, access, and automation. Integrators gain a premium wall interface that unifies multiple systems for the homeowner.

Jeff believes Brilliant’s greatest strength is how quickly it elevates a standard project. “It takes a standard install and quickly turns it into a more integrated, higher-end experience,” he said. A traditional light switch location becomes a centralized smart home control point capable of managing lighting, intercom, music, video doorbells, locks, shades, and other connected devices. For homeowners, that creates an immediate lifestyle upgrade. For installers, it creates a visible premium differentiator.

Many automation platforms can feel intimidating to contractors because of programming complexity or specialized expertise. Brilliant lowers that barrier. The installation is familiar, the learning curve is manageable, and the benefits are easy to demonstrate. Jeff emphasized this point directly: “It is a clean install, really low learning curve, there’s no heavy programming like some automation can be.”

That ease of adoption is matched by a strong emotional response from customers. Jeff notes that when homeowners first interact with the system, enthusiasm often becomes the strongest sales tool. “That’s honestly when it clicks,” he said. “When they see the homeowner react to it up on the wall when they walk into the room.”

Aartech has also found that Brilliant frequently leads to additional business after the first installation. Rather than creating negative callbacks, it often creates new opportunities. Jeff described the type of follow up dealers receive: “Hey Jeff, remember when you installed that Brilliant system and talked to me about shades? I love this. Let’s get over here and measure three windows.”

Those moments matter because they turn a one-time product sale into a broader customer relationship. Once homeowners experience centralized control, they often ask for motorized shades, expanded lighting scenes, whole-home audio, additional controls in more rooms or enhanced security integrations. What starts as one product can become the roadmap for an entire smart home.

Aartech also differentiates itself through support. Dealers working with Aartech gain access to account managers, wholesale pricing, training, technical resources, demonstrations, and project assistance. Jeff sees the company’s role as more than logistics. “I like to be the liaison between the vendors and the customers,” he said. That philosophy helps Aartech act as a growth partner rather than simply a distributor.

The company’s success with Brilliant highlights a larger shift in the market. The future is no longer about isolated gadgets or standalone devices. The winning products are platforms that connect trades, simplify selling, enhance the homeowner experience, and generate recurring revenue opportunities.

For Aartech Canada, Brilliant represents exactly that kind of opportunity. It helps electricians move into automation, helps security dealers upsell smarter solutions, helps builders deliver premium homes, and helps integrators create richer connected experiences. As Jeff put it, “It really does open up the whole ecosystem.”