Dealer Profile

Gramophone is a legendary audio-video-integration company that started in 1976. They have a total of six stores in Timonium, Columbia and Gaithersburg, Maryland; our Experience Center, with superb electronics in a beautiful setting, in Timonium; the Kitchen Design Center in Hunt Valley; and our new partners, World Wide Stereo, just north of Philadelphia in Montgomeryville, Pennnsylvania.

Their founder, Brian Hudkins, an enterprising young salesperson with four years of working at House of Sound under his belt, graduated from Towson University in 1976 and decided to open his own shop – and the rest is history.

How many people are on the Gramophone and World Wide Stereo teams?

A total of close to 200 employees.

Thoughts on the importance of training?

Training is key for our growth, for the simple reason that the world of custom electronics is changing so rapidly.  Many of our salespeople have been with us for decades, and we’re always learning new things

What do you like most about HARMAN Luxury Audio products and which lines do you feature?  

We sell ARCAM and JBL Synthesis, with a great sounding Synthesis system installed at our Gaithersburg store. We love the predictability and reliability of a calibrated JBL Synthesis system. We recently hosted a JBL Synthesis event in which we were able to show off that beautifully styled, and great sounding / looking, Gaithersburg system for a number of our customers. We took orders for several JBL Synthesis products that week, including an entire system.

How do you think the luxury audio industry is currently doing?  

Business has been strong for us, and with all the interesting technical innovations that have happened lately, we’re optimist about the future.

What is Gramophone’s mission?

We love audio, video, automation and design, as well as the challenge of going above and beyond for our customers! We are especially proud of being able to handle the entire job in a customer’s home. Our Design and Build / Electrical teams mean that we can handle all aspects of a custom installation job in-house, from bare walls to the completed system, without having to rely on outside contractors.

You have the floor. Anything else you want to share with us about Gramophone that you would like the world to know?

We are all about finding solutions that are the right ones for our customers.  We listen to our customer’s viewpoint, and then add our design expertise before the job begins. Listening and planning are vitally important in getting the best result – and big smiles from the customer – at the job’s completion. Creative thinking and problem-solving is a core part of our daily to-do list.