2010-07-23

Sandberg serves an ace into the lifestyle market

Interview with Martin Hollerup, Managing Director of Sandberg A/S, in connection with the launch of three new lifestyle headsets to be sold under the name Sandberg StreetGear FreshColor. Sandberg promises both lots of style and great sound quality at impressively low prices below €30. Is this possible?

Q: Until now we have mostly seen headsets with neutral designs from Sandberg – and they are almost boring. Why this sudden U-turn?
MH: I wouldn't exactly call it a U-turn, and we do still have some of the headsets you refer to as boring. There is a growing market for lifestyle headsets, where the headset should be seen rather than being hidden away.

Q: You have definitely gone for it with the colours. Who do you expect to buy these headsets?
MH: These are products for young people. FreeStyler is a smart device meant especially for girls, UrbanCruiser is for trendsetters and skateboarders and X-RayCamo is just cool. We have developed these designs together with the target groups.

Q: At these prices people might think that the new designs are meant to cover up inferior products. What do you say to that?
MH: There's not a grain of truth in that. As with our other headsets, we have really gone all out on the quality. In reality, Sandberg is a technical company and not a design company. We know exactly what we're doing when it comes to good sound, but we admit we have had help with the design. In addition to good sound, "wearability" is also an important factor. A headset has to be comfortable to wear for long periods and should fit any head. It also has to efficiently isolate the headset's sound from the surrounding environment. I think we are on the right track with these three headsets.

Q: What's Sandberg's positioning in the Lifestyle segment considering it's already overloaded with very strong brands?
MH: Yes, strong brands which have the bad habit of ripping off young people just because its design is aimed at the target group. For years now we have sold products with outstandingly good sound quality at keen prices, something which a whole host of product reviews in the media can confirm. But it's not all about adding our powerful technology to a few designs which attract the target group. It costs a bit more to develop, but the production price for a quality headset is not that much different just because the design has been pepped up. I have children in the target group myself and I am sometimes shocked by the exorbitant prices some established lifestyle brands charge for headsets which, from a technological point of view, offer the same as a Sandberg headset. Even if the latter only costs a third of the price. This is actually the reason why we have decided to break into the segment with the sub-brand StreetGear.

Q: You dipped your toes into the Lifestyle segment with the first StreetGear headset StreetBlaster about six months ago. How has it been received by the market?
MH: Very well indeed! I must admit that before launching the product, we had some internal discussions on setting the price – whether we simply had to set a higher price so that its quality would be trusted. When, as a consumer, you look at the selection in a shop, you might tend to believe that quality and price always go hand in hand – and thus doubt the quality of a product that costs half or one third of what the others cost. Luckily many consumers have trusted us. And in return they have obtained great quality at a low price. Sometimes production has not actually been able to meet the demand. This made us extra careful when we expanded the StreetGear series. These three FreshColor headsets are the new members of the family. And I can assure you that they won't be the last!

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Full press release

Information about the company: Sandberg A/S