History

Since 1987 the S.M.I.L.E. Vertriebs GmbH operates as a wholesaler and distributor for musical instruments and accessories. The company was originally founded by Harry Schubkegel, former owner of Session Music in Walldorf, what is indicated by name S.M.I.L.E. (Smile Session Musik Instrumente Lager und Elektronik Vertriebs GmbH).
The later owner, Dirk Hesse, worked for the company right from the start. Initially as sales manager, he became managing director and shareholder of the GmbH after just 15 months.

The initial product portfolio has been continually expanded and the company has grown to 10 employees in a short periode of time. Some brands from the portfolio of the early years:

ENGL amps
GODIN Guitars
DiMarzio pickups
EDEN Bass Amplification
R.COCCO strings
BLADE guitars

In 1993 Dirk Hesse took over all the shares, became the sole owner and the company relocated.
In 2001 Marco de Virgiliis, owner of PARSEK s.r.l., and Dirk Hesse met for the first time.
Already in 2002 S.M.I.L.E. became the first distributor for the completely new brand MARKBASS.
In 2003 the company relocated to Eschelbronn (well known for woodworking and instrument making industry) where storage space for future expansions was vacant. MARKBASS was established as a key product in the German market for bass equipment and more brands of PARSEK have been added to the portfolio.

MARKACOUSTIC
DV MARK
MARK DRUM
MARKAUDIO

Due to the growth of the business, the storage- and the office space needed to be expanded more than once.

In August 2017 the steady growth of the company made it necessary to relocate again to the current location in Eschelbronn which provides almost twice as much storage capacity as the one before.

At the end of 2017 S.M.I.L.E. took over also the distribution for MARKBASS, DV MARK and MARKAUDIO in Switzerland. The course has been set for the next generation. Jörn Langenfeld joined the company, Johannes Berthold became part of the team in 2019.

At the end of 2018 we set up the website for MARKAUDIO Germany (www.markaudio.de). Websites for DV MARK Germany (www.dvmark.de) and MARKBASS Germany (www.markbass.de) went online in 2019.

At the end of 2019 more than 240 pallet spaces are no longer sufficient. Further areas for a showroom and warehouse expansion are planned. At the beginning of 2020 the expansion needed to be postponed at short notice due to the outbreak of the corona pandemic.

In May 2020 S.M.I.L.E. took over the distribution for DS DRUM in Germany and Switzerland.