A headphone company shouldn't be telling you about their cars. But Valco isn't a normal headphone company, and honesty is our thing. So here it is: an insider look at what a 14-person company drives – and what it says about us.
Henri's Alfa Romeo – a love that hurts
CEO Henri drives an Alfa Romeo. This tells you everything you need to know about Valco's management philosophy: pick the beautiful, soulful option, even if it means regular trips to the mechanic.
An Alfa is to cars what Valco is to headphones – Italian passion that refuses to bend to corporate logic. The difference, of course, is that our headphones actually work. There's always some warning light on in the Alfa's dashboard. Henri claims it's "mood lighting."
According to the official Death Star budget, Henri's next car is a Ferrari. Realistically, we need about 40 million more headphones sold to get there. We're on the right track. Or at least on a track.
Raimo and the W124 – the only real car
Raimo is Valco's spiritual leader, the voice of the brand, and the man whose opinions nobody asked for but everyone gets. According to Raimo, the automotive world consists of the Mercedes-Benz W124 and then there's rubbish.
The W124 was built between 1984 and 1997. It's a car from an era when the Germans still built things to last. Raimo reckons this is a direct analogy to Valco's headphones: build it properly once, repair when needed, don't chuck it in the bin.
"Modern cars are the same thing as disposable headphones," Raimo says. "Plastic, glue, and planned obsolescence. In a W124, you can replace every single part. Just like our headphones."
We're not sure if this is a car review or a product ad. Both, we suppose.
Jasse's car – unknown, ears insured
Sound designer Jasse "Jazmanaut" Kesti hasn't told us what he drives. All we know is that his ears are insured and he hand-tunes the sound profile of every Valco headphone.
Jasse probably only cares about one thing in a car: what the engine sounds like. A deep V8 rumble or an electric car's space-age whine – it matters when your ears are your livelihood. We strongly suspect Jasse's car has an aftermarket subwoofer that shakes bolts loose from the back seat.
What this tells you about Valco
In a company where the CEO drives a perpetually broken Italian car and the brand persona swears by a 30-year-old Merc, decisions aren't made based on trends. We do things we believe in.
That's why our headphones get repaired, not thrown away. That's why the price is honest and not hidden behind a brand premium. And that's why 14 people from Oulu sell headphones to 58 countries – without a billion-euro ad budget.
Every purchase gets us closer to that Ferrari. And the Death Star. Mostly the Death Star.
