January 1995

Wiring Teachers

Idea growing from the basement workshop toward a $1 million business

By Kristen Malott

Mike Sager is on the threshold of a million dollar business that began in the basement of Avalon Music.

Sager, co-owner of Avalon Music on Wenatchee Avenue, has developed a wireless microphone and speaker system that amplifies a teacher’s voice.

“It’s like a mini public address system,” said Theresa Oxos, national sales director for Sager. “A teacher can move all over the room and still be heard.”

Custom Audio Design*, a division of Avalon Music, began selling classroom amplification systems in March 1993 and expects sales to reach close to $1 million by the close of this school year.

So far, Sager and Oxos have sold more than 200 systems nationwide.

Sager has installed 27 units in Wenatchee schools, 33 in East Wenatchee schools and 40 in Ephrata. Over the Christmas holidays, he installed 18 systems at schools in Spokane and Ephrata.

The system costs $700** and is capable of amplifying 24 classrooms in one building.

At the core of the system is a pyramid-shaped plastic cabinet housing five four-inch speakers suspended from the ceiling to distribute sound equally.

The cabinet is manufactured in Kent and assembled in the basement of Avalon Music.

It took six months to design and perfect the product, Sager said.

Developing a sound system adaptable to any classroom wasn’t easy.

“When I first started designing the system I realized every classroom is laid out differently,” he said. “And classrooms that already had systems never had consistent sound placement because speakers were generally situated around the perimeter of the room at ear level.

“With that placement, speakers were often disconnected or items were placed in front of them.”

Wiring Teachers: system easy to install

While hanging speakers from the ceiling eliminated placement problems, it forced Sager to streamline the speaker cabinet.

After several prototypes, the pyramid-shaped cabinet proved to be the best model.

To install, a ceiling tile is removed and the 12-pound speaker cabinet is inserted. The cabinet is also fireproof and earthquake safe.

Sager tested 14 different speakers, six wireless microphones and five amplifiers before finding the best components for the system.

We are looking for intelligibility of speech,” Oxos said. “Most speakers aren’t designed for voice reinforcement.”

Custom Audio Design* has two major competitors, Lifeline, which entered the market two years earlier than Sager, and Telex***. His competitors are both based on the East Coast and all three companies are targeting the educational system.

“We’re focusing on schools because there are hundreds out there,” Oxos said.

“Classroom amplification has a chance to become a huge corporate factor,” Sager added. “There are 50 states in the union and we’re getting 40 to 50 orders per month.

“We’ll approach $1 million in sales for our first school year – this is a huge market.

Oxos, a former school teacher, is pursuing new accounts by traveling to national audiology conventions and conducting product demonstrations in schools, PTA meetings and for service clubs.

“My goal is to contact as many schools as possible,” Oxos said, “ and to sell 100 systems per month within the next two years.”

Sager and Oxos have also produced a promotional video that describes the product and demonstrates its benefits.

“We have a free 30-day trial** period and so far none of the systems have been returned,” she said.

Tight school district budgets make some sales calls tough.

“Money is the biggest hurdle,” Oxos said, “But once a school is convinced (the system improves education) they can usually find the money.

“Sometimes schools get grants or use computer funds – and for the PTA and service clubs raising $700 isn’t a lot of money.”

According to Oxos, the system benefits both teachers and students.

“It helps behavior problems – test scores rise 7 percent in classrooms using the amplifier system,” she said. “The system also reduces costs per classroom 40 percent because teachers aren’t pushing their voices so fewer substitute teachers are hired.

“And it lowers the number of special education classes needed because more children (with minor hearing problems) can be mainstreamed.”

Oxos believes Sager’s amplification system outsells the competition because it isn’t intimidating.

“I’ve installed systems myself,” she said.

“All a teacher has to do is walk into the room, put on the microphone and turn on the system.

“Teachers don’t want to mess with one more thing, so we had to make it easy.”

Sager was first introduced to classroom amplification two years ago by a local audiologist interested in amplifying a classroom.

“At the time the product was still in its infancy and I got busy in the store so I couldn’t devote much time to develop a system,” he said.

A year later Sager began applying the technology he learned setting up sound systems in churches and convention halls to accommodate classrooms.

The pair’s immediate goals are to continue educating schools about amplification and capture a larger share of the market.

“Our long-term goals include expanding our sales force and possibly having our complete systems manufacture under our name,” Sager said.

*Custom Audio Design was purchased by Theresa Oxos and Ron Moe, moved to Lynnwood, WA. The name was changed to Custom AllHear Systems, Inc.

**Cost of system has increased since this article was written

***Custom AllHear Systems, Inc has since teamed with Telex, producing the Telex Classmate Ceiling Soundfield System.