Fall 2008 issue of Horizons

CLIENT SPOTLIGHT The Sound Room

Young, founder and owner of The Sound Room, has been providing St. Louisans with entertainment and sound systems since 1983. “I used to stock turntables and speakers,” observes Young. “Today it’s flat panel HDTVs and surround sound, lighting and home theatre systems, video projectors, concealing screens and ‘Smart Home’ control systems.” Young believes he has one of the best jobs in the world. “I get to give people part of their day back,” he states. “People can enter their homes and, with the touch of a screen, turn on all their lights, adjust the room temperature and select a home movie, sports venue or surround sound music environment. We’re able to give our customers more time with their families and loved ones. That’s worth everything. “It’s all about making things easy for our customers,” says Young. “Our designers and technicians take care of the technology. The last thing people want is to have to struggle with multiple remotes and malfunctioning equipment. Our systems are easy to use, fully integrated and interactive. We call it the babysitter standard. If the babysitter can’t operate the system, then something is wrong.” Over the years, Young has learned that approximately 10 percent of his customers are highly tech-savvy, while the other 90 percent just want the pleasure of the home entertainment system, but they don’t necessarily want to deal with the technical aspects. So, The Sound Room strives to make the technology do all the work. Young started living his passion for sound during his college years as a media major at Webster University, while working part-time for a company that sold sound equipment. “I wanted to take it to the next level and, in 1983, was able to open my first store at Ballas and Olive with the help of a few key customers.” Now, 25 years later, Young heads one of the area’s largest home entertainment companies, with expansive showrooms in Chesterfield and Creve Coeur and a new 7,000-square-foot operations center in Chesterfield Valley. “With centralized warehousing and plenty of room, our technicians are able to build and test our systems, minimizing time spent in homes installing systems,” adds “We like to empower our customers,” says Young. “Entertainment shouldn’t be work. It’s supposed to be fun.”

Leadership in Home Entertainment and Technology What started as a passion for music and high- fidelity systems for teenager David Young has evolved into a successful business creating state-of-the-art home entertainment and technology systems for many of the St. Louis area’s finest homes and condominium developments.

27 ◆ fall 2008 issue