ROSEVILLE, CALIFORNIA — InnerScope Hearing Technologies Inc. (OTCQB:INND) announced that it has signed a 10-Year Manufacturing, Design and Marketing Agreement with Zounds Hearing, Inc. Zounds is an FDA registered manufacturer of hearing aids, related components, and accessories.
Under the Agreement, Zounds will be a subcontractor for InnerScope, providing all of InnerScope’s design, technology, manufacturing, and supply chain services.
The agreement allows InnerScope to leverage the tens of millions of dollars Zounds has invested in engineering, manufacturing, and supply chain capabilities. InnerScope will also have the right to access Zounds’ research and development and advanced audio technology contained within its 52 exclusive patents. In addition, the companies will also execute a joint marketing agreement to assist each other with marketing in other distribution channels and leverage each company’s relationships across both companies’ brands. The marketing agreement will also allow InnerScope to add and market Zounds current product portfolio through all of InnerScope’s distribution channels.
InnerScope Becomes Hearing Aid Manufacturer
InnerScope, currently a distributor and marketer of hearing aids through multiple distribution channels, will now become a registered FDA hearing aid manufacturer.
The FDA registered medical device facility located in Chandler, Arizona, will also warehouse its manufactured hearing aids and related components and accessories. InnerScope will now join the select few worldwide traditional manufacturers of hearing aid devices (non-specialty hearing products) that currently serve the growing and emerging hearing impaired market.
With the high cost of hearing aids and the lack of easy accessibility, these 13 hearing aid manufacturers are only serving less than 4% or equivalent to 7+ Billion USD of the total global hearing-impaired market. In the U.S. alone, its estimated only 8 million people are hearing aid users out of 48 million people who are hearing-impaired.
InnerScope’s strategic plan as a hearing aid manufacturer is to design and manufacture multiple brand labels of high quality hearing aids at different price points for its multiple distribution channels. For example, its Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) division, InnerScope will be developing a very affordable line of “Self Fitting” hearing aids, which allow the consumer to simply fit, program and adjust the hearing aids, all through their smart phone, in less than three minutes.
InnerScope’s hearing aids designed and distributed to the company’s corporate owned physical audiological hearing aid retail stores and to its Buying Group members, will have more audiological features and fine tuning options and adjustments available for a more precision fitting by hearing healthcare professionals.
“Zounds is well positioned to support InnerScope’s vision and business plan. We are very excited to be part of InnerScope’s long-term success. It was an easy decision given the passion of InnerScope’s management and the years of experience and expertise marketing and selling hearing aids. Zounds expertise in hearing aid design, intellectual property, manufacturing, and supply chain management, will enable InnerScope to rapidly scale.”
–Sam Thomasson, President and CEO of Zounds Hearing, Inc
“Becoming a hearing aid manufacturer, is truly a “Game Changer” for InnerScope”, said Matthew Moore, CEO of InnerScope Hearing Technologies. “This Agreement with Zounds has elevated InnerScope from not only a hearing aid distribution and marketing company, but to a global hearing aid manufacturer as well. Zounds’ amazing patented hearing aid technology with over 80,000 customers in the United States and their expertise in manufacturing and design was a perfect fit for what InnerScope needed to disrupt the current hearing aid market place. Additionally, as a manufacturer InnerScope will increase its margin by 28% to 75%, depending on the product line. Plus, we will be able to meet all of the demands now and in the future on all hearing aid product orders from all of our large retail distributors,” continued Mr. Moore.
“This distinction as a global hearing aid manufacturer gives InnerScope, as a public company, the ability to be compared to other public hearing aid companies. For example, Sonova, Sivantos, GN ReSound and William Demant Holding A/S are all publicly traded (not traded on U.S. stock exchange) hearing aid manufacturers (part of the Big Six) companies. However, IntriCon is the only U.S. publicly traded company that is a hearing aid manufacturer”, Mr. Moore concluded.
Source: InnerScope
