Sonance

ID#080515A

PUBLISHED ON

OCTOBER 23, 2008

REVISED ON

MARCH 22, 2011

Sonance at a Turning Point

BY NATALIE MIZIK *

ABSTRACT

CONTENTS

In 1982, Sonance, a high-end audio company,

invented a new product category: in-wall speakers. At

Introduction .........................................1

the close of 2005, Sonance was at a turning point. The

company attempted to benefit from the boom in the

Industry ................................................3

housing market in the 2000s by shifting its focus from

its traditional channel of custom installation dealers to

Competitors .........................................7

pursuing production developers and mass-market

consumers. While growth accelerated, its relationship

with the high-end audio dealers began to deteriorate.

Issues Defined .....................................1

Company ..............................................2

Traditional Channel .............................3

Customers ............................................5

Context .................................................7

New Products ......................................8

Options ...............................................10

Exhibits...............................................11

Led by recent Columbia Business School graduate Ari

Supran, Sonance’s sales and marketing teams

struggled to determine the best strategy for the future.

*

Natalie Mizik is Gantcher

Associate Professor of Business,

Columbia Business School

Acknowledgements

I am grateful for the time and effort

donated by Shawn Sugarman (CEO,

Sonance) and Ari Supran (COO,

Sonance) in the development of this

case.

Danielle Fox provided research and

writing support.

Copyright information

© 2008 by The Trustees of Columbia University in

the City of New York. All rights reserved. This case

cannot be used or reproduced without explicit

permission from Columbia CaseWorks. To obtain

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