Leon Speakers hosted an exclusive dealer event Thursday highlighting its Living Space Theater Solutions at a home design showcase on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The event was established through a partnership with high-end interior design magazine Veranda and designer Thomas O’Brien for the Designer Vision Series, a feature in the publication’s upcoming January/February issue.
Leon Speakers’ Vault Series in-wall speakers were painted to exactly match the walls in each room of this sleek, Upper East Side designer showcase apartment.
O’Brien drew inspiration for the space from the movie Someone to Watch Over Me, as well as its “made in America” theme. So when Veranda sought out an all-American luxury audio brand to feature in the apartment, Leon Speakers was equally compelled to participate, according to Ethan Kaplan, director of marketing for Leon.
The pre-war luxury apartment was outfitted with Leon’s Horizon HzUT-LCR, ultra-thin soundbars, which are custom built to fit a TV’s exact dimensions; the Aaros A10-UT ultra-thin hardwood subwoofers, customized to match the hardwood in the apartment’s flooring; and the Vault Series v114-A in-wall speakers painted with the exact color the designer used.
If it wasn’t already clear, custom, custom, custom was the mantra of the day. Leon’s staff continuously emphasized the ultra high-end, luxury product design focus for which the company has become known.
Noah Kaplan, Leon Speakers’ president, did so in part by providing a brief yet personal history of the company, from his design school background to the music recording and design studio he established to the world of high-fidelity sound products he currently presides over. Kaplan never strayed from his passion for the visual arts combined with a love for great-sounding music. This is the basis for Leon Speakers signature, thing, sleek, and otherwise aesthetically pleasing speakers.
“I want to see art and video and audio converge,” Kaplan said.
While addressing the dealers that came to see the apartment, Kaplan derided the “industrial” look of cords and mounts, saying that he is determined to push them toward obsolescence. “We want to get rid of cords and mounts,” he stated.
Noah Kaplan, Leon Speakers president, shows off the Vault Series in-wall speakers.
This may seem like a pretty renegade attitude, but he continued to discuss “the Leon of the future,” which aims to “break the boundaries of normal.”
The crux of this idea rests in how integrators and consumers think about their televisions. Leon seems incredibly focused on making TVs “actually made to go in the home,” Kaplan said.
This new-age concept of flat-panel design includes hi-fi soundbars coupled with custom paint and frames handpicked for each installation, just like the Leon products on display for Veranda’s Designer Visions apartment. Leon also plans on integrating a camera for web conferencing capabilities, possibly even in extreme high-definition format.
Enter the Leon TV: a concept the Kaplan brothers have been more than teasing since they first brought an early prototype to CEDIA 2010. Officially dubbed the REYN Panel—an acronym for residential enterprise “you-nified” network—visitors to Leon’s 2011 CEDIA booth may recall seeing the “Trithon,” a vintage, tripod mounted version decked out with a python-skin belt. Now with a flat-panel manufacturer partnership sealed, yet still kept under wraps, Ethan Kaplan said an official, full product announcement is on target for Q3 2012.
Much of the event was geared toward a deep sense of dealer appreciation from both parties. Kaplan pledged that Leon productions “will NEVER be sold on the internet.”
In his signature, chummy nature, he also told dealers, “We just want to be an easy part of what you guys do.”
And the feeling seemed mutual, as one dealer graciously shook Kaplan’s hand, thanked him for what Leon does, and declared “We’re very proud dealers.”
See more of this apartment and learn about Veranda’s Designer Visions here.
