Show Gear

What Show Gear does

Show Gear is a Nigerian e-commerce retailer specializing in musical instruments and professional audio equipment, headquartered in Yaba, Lagos, with operations in Abuja and Windhoek, Namibia. Founded in 2015, the company operates an online storefront distributing premium international brands including Shure, Nord, Fender, Waves Audio, Radial, V-Moda, FBT, Aquarian, and Paiste across five core product categories: speakers (column arrays, portable audio, sub-woofers), guitars (acoustic, bass, electric, electro-acoustic, combos, effects), drums and percussion, keyboards and pianos, and microphones (wireless, wired, in-ear monitors).

The underlying platform is a multi-domain e-commerce architecture serving consumer, institutional, and professional buyers across Nigeria. Beyond retail, Show Gear has built a vertically integrated ecosystem of four sub-brands — Studio (recording services at studio.showgearonline.com), Records (label services at showgear-records.com), Training (music education at training.showgearonline.com), and Production (event production and rental at production.showgearonline.com) — extending the company from a single vertical into a multi-service music industry platform.

Revenue is generated through unit-priced product sales billed one-time in Nigerian Naira with VAT inclusive, complemented by event production and rental fees, installation and consultancy professional services, and after-sales support. The customer base spans government agencies (LAMATA), recording studios (Auxell, The Mine Studio), artists (Patoranking), media productions (The Voice Nigeria), beverage-sponsored events (Hennessy Artistry), and a notable concentration of megachurches including Living Faith Church, Dunamis, TREM, Four Square Gospel Church, Assemblies of God, Christ Embassy, and Dominion.

Name

Show Gear

Legal name

Show Gear

Website

https://showgearonline.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Show Gear is a Nigerian e-commerce retailer and vertically integrated music platform selling premium musical instruments and professional audio equipment, serving churches, event producers, recording studios, and individual musicians across Nigeria, with ecosystem sub-brands in studio recording, label services, training, and event production.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Musical Instruments & Pro Audio Retail

NAICS

Musical Instrument and Supplies Retailers (459140), Musical Instrument and Supplies Retailers (45914)

SIC

Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)

akta.pro primary industry

Musical Instrument Retail (Guitars, Keyboards, Drums, Band/Orchestra) (CRALAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Pro Audio & Recording Equipment Retail (MI-adjacent) (CRALAEAC), Instrument & Pro Audio Retail (Online/Brick-and-Mortar) (MPAIAJAH), Instrument Accessories & Consumables Retail (Strings, Reeds, Sticks, Cables) (CRALAEAE)

Keywords

• Musical instruments retail
• Pro audio equipment
• Sound system sales
• Music equipment store
• Audio gear distribution

Headquarters

HQ city

Yaba

HQ country

Nigeria

HQ region

Africa

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Product Sales: Direct retail of musical instruments and audio equipment through online storefront
2. Event Production/Rental: Event production and equipment rental services for live events
3. Installation & Consultancy: Professional installation services and technical consultancy for audio equipment
4. After-Sales Support: Repairs, warranty services, and ongoing technical support

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Show Gear operates an online store selling musical instruments and professional audio equipment — including speakers, guitars, drums, keyboards/pianos, and microphones from brands such as SHURE, NORD, WAVES AUDIO, Fender, Radial, V-Moda, and FBT — to consumers and enterprise clients across Nigeria and Namibia. Beyond product retail, the company delivers event production and equipment rental, professional installation, technical consultancy, repair/warranty services, and after-sales support through dedicated service operations in Lagos and Abuja.

Product overview

Show Gear is Nigeria's largest online musical instruments e-commerce platform with operations in Lagos and Abuja. The offering consists of a unified online store (showgearonline.com) complemented by four related sub-brands: Studio for recording services, Records for music production, Training for musical education, and Production for event rental services. The core online store offers an extensive portfolio of musical instruments and professional audio equipment organized into five main product categories: Speakers (including Column Arrays, Portable Audio, and Sub-Woofer Speakers), Guitars (Acoustic, Electric, Bass, and Electro-Acoustic), Drums & Percussions (Electric Sets, Drumheads, Cymbals), Keyboards/Piano, and Microphones (Wireless, Wired, and In Ear Monitors). The company also provides complementary services including Event Production/Rental, Installation, Consultancy, Repairs/Warranty, and After Sales Support, serving both retail customers and professional clients like churches and event venues.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Studio: Online studio equipment store (studio.showgearonline.com)
• Records
• Training
• Production

Products and services

• Show Gear Online Store Nigeria's self-described biggest online musical instruments e-commerce platform, retailing speakers, guitars, drums, keyboards/pianos, and microphones from premium brands for individual musicians and professional buyers across Nigeria and Namibia.
• Studio Services Recording studio services and equipment offerings operated as a sub-brand of Show Gear, targeting musicians and artists who need professional recording environments.
• Records Record label and music production services offered as a sub-brand of Show Gear, supporting artists across recording and release.
• Training Music training and education services delivered through the Show Gear ecosystem for musicians and aspiring artists.
• Event Production & Equipment Rental Professional event production and audio equipment rental services for concerts, churches, corporate events, and live performances; quotes requested online via the Show Gear website.
• Installation Services Professional installation of audio and musical equipment for venues such as churches, studios, and event spaces, delivered alongside equipment sales.
• Consultancy Technical advisory and consultancy services for clients evaluating or deploying audio equipment and musical instrument setups.
• Repairs & Warranty Services Equipment repair and warranty service staffed by technicians, providing after-sales fixes and warranty support for purchased instruments and audio equipment.
• After-Sales Support Post-purchase customer support provided by sales engineers to buyers of Show Gear instruments and audio equipment.

Named customers13 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• WAVES AUDIOcoreTechnology or IntegrationPremium audio processing and effects brand featured as key brand partner. Products include professional audio equipment and software integrations.
• SHUREcoreTechnology or IntegrationLeading microphone and audio equipment manufacturer. Featured brand partner supplying wireless microphones, wired microphones, and accessories.
• NORDcoreTechnology or IntegrationPremium keyboard and piano manufacturer. Featured brand partner for keyboards and keyboard accessories including stands.
• FendercoreTechnology or IntegrationIconic guitar and amplifier manufacturer. Featured brand for electric and acoustic guitars.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Guitar Center: Largest US specialty musical instrument retailer (now online-led). Provides the broad-incumbent reference point for what scale, private-equity ownership, and category dominance look like in musical-instrument retail, even though Show Gear's niche and geography differ.
• B&H Photo Video: Larger US online retailer that operates across music, audio, video, and electronics. Analogous to Show Gear as a multi-category online retailer that uses scale, brand portfolio, and content to drive traffic — but in a much broader assortment.
• Sam Ash Music: Long-standing US multi-category musical instrument retailer with both online and physical presence. Comparable to Show Gear in product breadth and church/education/studio customer mix, but at much greater scale.

Direct peers

• Kraft Music: US online retailer specializing in keyboards, pianos, recording, and pro audio with in-house tech support and installation service — closely mirrors Show Gear's keyboard/microphone/studio focus and service-led GTM.
• Thomann: World's largest online musical instrument and pro audio retailer, operating across Europe with global shipping. Closest business-model analog to Show Gear: broad multi-category catalog (guitars, drums, keys, PA, microphones), proprietary online storefront, in-house installation/consultancy, and event/studio adjacencies. Illustrates the scale a category-leading online music retailer can reach.
• Studiospares: UK and EU online retailer/distributor of pro audio, recording, and studio equipment aimed at studios, churches, and live-sound customers. Closest peer to Show Gear's pro-audio/studio/PA-heavy mix rather than its retail-instrument side.
• Sweetwater: Largest US-based online retailer of musical instruments and pro audio, famous for free shipping, deep sales-engineer support, and installed-base service. Mirrors Show Gear's combination of e-commerce, free technical advice, and post-sales service as a moat against Amazon and Guitar Center.
• Andertons Music Co. Leading UK online musical instrument retailer with strong YouTube/content flywheel and multi-category catalog comparable to Show Gear's product breadth. Comparable mid-sized online music retailer competing against broader incumbents.

Others

• Jumia Technologies: Pan-African e-commerce marketplace with deep Nigeria presence. Not a direct musical-instrument competitor, but the dominant marketplace Show Gear must coexist with on price discovery, logistics, and customer acquisition in Nigeria.

Regional players

• Takealot: Largest South African online retailer with a broad general-merchandise catalog including some musical instruments and audio. Relevant as a regional e-commerce reference and as a potential future cross-border expansion analogue for Show Gear within Africa.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/showgearonline
• Facebookfacebook.com/SGonlineNigeria
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/showgearonline

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Show Gear