A Day in the Life (#gradolabs)

Interestingly, more and more audio manufacturers are showing up on Instagram. I follow several, including Meridian, Sonos, Sony, Skullcandy, Cambridge Audio, VPI, and Grado. This week, We Shop American, another account I follow (@weshopamerican), posted a series of images detailing a day in the life of the Brooklyn headphone manufacturer’s VP of marketing, Jon Grado. Followers get to learn a bit about the manufacturing process; read about the classic line of Grado headphones; and see the company’s listening room, complete with an unreleased 32-driver Grado loudspeaker.

Right now, We Shop American is featuring an interview with Jon Grado, who, like VPI’s Matthew Weisfeld, is part of the exciting next generation of hi-fi enthusiasts aiming to bring the hobby to a wider and younger audience. Here’s an excerpt from the interview:

We Shop American: What’s your goal for the company in the next 5 years…10 years?

Jon Grado: We haven’t advertised since 1964. That’s a very long time. Being VP of marketing and not advertising forces me to get creative and find ways to help get the name out there without commercials, billboards, skywriting messages in the sky, etc. . . . Although, that last one . . . Gonna have to run that by my dad later! My main focus is getting the Grado name out there and strengthening the Grado community. We’ve had 60 years to perfect the sound, and now I’d like for more people to know about it.

Seems to me like Jon and Grado are well on their way. (InnerFidelity.com readers are also aware that Grado recently collaborated with hi-fi enthusiast Elijah Wood and Bushmill's Irish whiskey to design the company's first closed-back headphone. The limited-edition design sold out almost immediately, according to the excellent NYC-based retailer Turntable Lab. I know that because I follow Turntable Lab on Instagram.)

Visit We Shop American to read the rest of the interview with Jon Grado, and register for a chance to win a set of Grado SR60i headphones, a true audiophile classic. Everyone should own a pair. (I do.) And follow me on Instagram at @stephenmejias.