Ann Arbor’s Leon Speakers hires 12 people

In theory, internship programs are supposed to work as a kind of farm team for companies, attracting young talent to the business early so the best of the best can rise to the top and join the staff. Leon Speakers is putting that theory into action. The Ann Arbor-based custom speaker company has expanded its staff to 40 people and the occassional intern thanks to the internal hiring of interns. The firm has hired three of its interns over the last two years. "We use interns," says Noah Kaplan, president of Leon Speakers. "We have interns and we pay interns. We want to pay people for work. We have found some of our best guys through internships." Leon Speakers started out building custom speakers using silk screens and exotic hardwoods. The idea was to carve out a niche building beautiful speakers that could be installed into odd places. Fifthteen years later the company has made a name for itself with innovations like developing the first speakers specifically for plasma TVs and inventing the sound bar. The growth from that has also it to hire 12 people this year, including creating seven new jobs. It also expanding its production space and focusing on improving its product development process. Kaplan expects these moves to position the firm for significant growth soon. "We're looking to double our production with the space we have acquired," Kaplan says. Source: Noah Kaplan, president of Leon Speakers Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.