Zounds Acquired by Private Investors
PHOENIX--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Zounds Hearing, a unique manufacturing and retail company focused on providing hearing aids with state-of-the-art fidelity, lower price point and professional services, has been acquired by a group of its previous investors headed by Derwood Chase and Michael Stewart.
Derwood Chase stated, “I have worn Zounds hearing aids for over 2 years and personally found the sound quality to be far superior to any product that I had previously worn. I felt so strongly about the product, that when the opportunity to buy more of the company and expand its operations on a more efficient basis arose, we were pleased to do so.”
Zounds has restructured and initiated a strategy to open multiple “neighborhood” locations, away from the regional malls, allowing it to manage costs more effectively while continuing superior customer service. “Our customers made it clear they wanted Zounds locations that are closer to their homes,” said Sam Thomasson, Zounds President and CEO. “We listened to our customers, and made the rollout of neighborhood locations a top priority in each market we serve.”
Zounds now has 26 neighborhood hearing center locations in operation in Arizona, Florida, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington. “We are continuing to execute our accelerated hearing center opening schedule, and we expect to have 50 hearing centers in operation by the end of the year,” said Thomasson.
Zounds founder Sam Thomasson will remain as President and Chief Executive Officer. Thomasson started the company as a promise to his hearing-impaired daughter. He vowed to create a new hearing aid to overcome her frustration with her traditional hearing aids, caused by excessive feedback, noise, poor sound quality and discomfort in the ear. After 10 years in development and 58 exclusive patents, the breakthrough technology behind Zounds has revolutionized the hearing aid experience. Thomasson is “pleased about the acquisition, and looking forward to the exciting growth plan Zounds has in place for the future.”
Zounds appreciates its customers' support and patience through this transition process and remains committed to helping the world hear better and continuing to support its thousands of customers.
About Zounds
Zounds Hearing designs, manufactures, and markets high-performance hearing aids for use with mild, moderate, and severe hearing impairments. Headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, the company's technology enables superior product performance, lower price, and a faster purchase process through its branded hearing centers. Zounds utilizes a combination of internally developed research and exclusive, licensed technology developed by Acoustic Technologies. Zounds aids are available through a network of Zounds Hearing Centers. For more information, please visit www.ZoundsHearing.com or call 1-888-5ZOUNDS.
Contact:
Zounds Hearing Jody Nelson, 480-813-8400, ext. 232 Jody.Nelson@ZoundsHearing.com