Will you help build and run a company with me?

     Welcome to the AudioFox Blog.  The goal of this blog is to introduce folks to AudioFox, the products we build and sell, and the reason we do what we do.  My hope is that by explaining our story and connecting with others, they will choose to let us help them in the tonal journey.

    To kick off the series, I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Stephen Richlich.  I have been playing guitar for 26 years.  I'm an Engineering Manager at a tech company in West Michigan.  My education is in software engineering and I have years of experience in software development, product development, and management.  As a guitar player, I recorded and toured with a metal band out of West Michigan called Our Fate in Hell (OFIH for short).  We opened for many touring bands and played anywhere from 2-4 nights a week.  The other guitar player in OFIH is my best friend and brother from another mother, Sean Conley.  We have spent the last 25+ years playing guitar together, developing different tones, and collecting all types of gear.  When it comes down to it, Sean is a bit of a mad scientist when it comes to guitar and electronics.  Having spent time working for Sweetwater as a tech and doing development on his own, he's learned to hone his craft.

    Over the years he and I have dabbled with developing our own products and ideas related to music, but in the beginning of 2022 I got a text that peaked my interest.  After returning back to Michigan and settling in, he decided that now was the right time to start developing a business.  Sean sent me a text that read "I need you to be my boss".  After first laughing a bit and wondering what the hell he was talking about, I responded with "?".  Anyone that knows Sean knows all too well what I am about to say.  My phone rang, I answered, and he did a brain dump on me for about 1.5 hours.  That initial conversation included about 15 different ideas or approaches that we could take, but the bottom line question Sean had for me was: Will you help build and run a company with me?

    I was immediately filled with questions, thoughts, and ideas.  Of course I wanted to start a business that was music related but it had to be done the right way.  1. What would we offer?  2. What service or product are we providing the industry?  3. As co-owners and operators, what were the core values and beliefs that we believed the company should represent?  One by one, we addressed my questions and developed our charter or mission statement.  

1. We would be a company for musicians by musicians.

2. Guitar electronics - custom, boutique, production, everything in between. Digital presence and material.

3. Quality is the top value and belief we have here at AudioFox.  If we are going to put our label on a product, we have to have played it, tested it, and verified that the customer is getting what they trusted us to deliver.  Any issues and we will work them.  We will use quality components and not resort to getting by with what is cheap to protect bottom line.  For musicians, by musicians.

    The final core belief that we launch this company with is that we want this company to be a legacy that we can leave our sons' with.  Someday we would love for them to work alongside us, building, testing, and developing products.  The company should represent something they look back at proudly.  With the mission statement nailed down, the core beliefs in place, it's time to launch the business.  At that time, AudioFox is born.

    Check back soon as I continue the story of our company.  Thank you to all that are reading this and I hope you enjoy our story.  Feel free to write, leave comments, or even email me with thoughts at srichlich@audio-fox.com.