Julian Vereker

Julian Charles Prendergast Vereker MBE (7 May 1945 – 14 January 2000) was an English self-taught designer of audio equipment, and the founder of Naim Audio Ltd. of Salisbury, Wiltshire. He was an influential figure in the manufacture and retail of British high fidelity audio equipment in the 1970s and 1980s. Biography Family and education Julian Vereker was born in Oxford, England. He was the great-great grandson of the 3rd Viscount Gort. His great-grandfather had been Consul at Cherbourg and his grandfather a naval commander; his father Charles became Professor of Political Theory at Durham University. Vereker therefore grew up in a lively academic family, which did not prevent him from becoming a rebellious adolescent in the 1960s. Though requiring four attempts to pass O Level mathematics, he developed a passion for engineering, left Bryanston School at 16. He attended technical college in Liverpool, followed by the College of Aero and Automobile Engineering in London. Professional life He co-founded Coburn Improvements, a company that custom modified sports and racing cars. He then made improvements to a Mini 850 S, which he raced for several seasons. In 1967, he participated in 23 races, of which he won 16 and placed in the rest. After that successful season, he decided to sell his car: it realised about £650 – a small fortune at the time. Vereker worked briefly for Downton Engineering and Janspeed but lost interest in cars. Pursuing his interest in reproduction of sound with 8 mm film, Vereker found that prices were high due to a dearth of supply, and built a machine to perforate recording tape capable of making 6 million feet a year.