Video & Audio Center of Los Angeles, California blends cutting-edge technology with old-fashioned customer care. It has proven a hugely successful formula for this award-winning company that offers the latest and greatest in televisions, audio equipment, outdoor and home technology, and digital cameras. The company has four stores in Los Angeles and also operates a custom systems integration division called Just One Touch.
“Our stores are similar to Apple stores. You walk in; you can touch; you can feel; you can experience what you’re getting. We have knowledgeable staff who can direct you on how to use the solution,” explains Joseph Akhtarzad, co-owner and Vice President of Video & Audio Center and President of Just One Touch.
Notable products include frame, flat-screen, and wall televisions. ‘Frame’ televisions resemble a painting when not in use. One year ago, the company sold and installed a massive Samsung wall television measuring over 200 inches wide, with a price tag of $800,000. Such gargantuan sets make a stunning impression.
The enormous project required “a lot of meticulous planning and coordination with Samsung engineers,” states Walden Caballero, Director of Operations at Just One Touch. The client was delighted with the results and promptly ordered two more large Samsung televisions, he adds.
Video & Audio Center has also embraced ‘transparent’ televisions from LG Electronics, which utilize organic light emitting diode (OLED) panels to present a see-through screen when turned off. The company is partial to Sony projection televisions due to their reliability and quality and claims to have the largest selection of Sony products in the country.
The company’s audio products include all manner of speakers, radios, cables, karaoke systems, receivers, headphones, remote controls, and more, while its home technology category encompasses everything from air purifiers and grills to bread makers and voice assistants. Outdoor technology includes wearables, GoPro systems, and Segways.
The company also sells elaborate home automation and security systems that enable clients to remotely lock or unlock doors, greet visitors, and control their lighting in addition to their HVAC systems. Clients can turn off their sprinklers remotely in case of rain and view visuals from security cameras on their phones. Another home technology function can automatically raise and lower window blinds when residents are away, letting would-be burglars believe someone is at home. Other services include video transfers, media duplication of DVDs, Blu-ray discs, and CDs, and television rentals.
Indeed, Video & Audio Center is more than just a source for consumer electronics. The Just One Touch segment excels at installing home theaters, media centers, automation systems, audio systems, and household technology networks, with an integration process that begins with a one-on-one discussion with the client to determine their needs and budget. Based on these specifications, Just One Touch comes up with a proposal and presents it to the client. Once the proposal is accepted, staff members develop a design using CAD software and other tools, and company technicians use the design to plan the installation.
“A lot of my friends rely on me,” says Akhtarzad. “When they buy a new house or remodel a house, [we offer] a turnkey solution. If you want to do a home theater, you give us the space, and we will turn it—within eight to 12 weeks—into a home theater for you. We’ve done home theatres from $50,000 to $100,000; we’ve done many home theaters for over $500,000 to $1 million.”
Just One Touch provides 24/7 support and has crews prepared to act in all manner of emergency situations. For instance, the company contacted clients whose homes were destroyed in the recent fires that ravaged the Los Angeles area, sending “numerous messages to make sure they know we are here for them.”
The company traces its roots to the early 1980s. After completing a master’s degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Nottingham in the UK, Akhtarzad decided to join his older brother Mayer in Southern California. He worked for a satellite dish firm for a few months, and then the brothers teamed up to launch Video & Audio Center in 1981. Mayer remains President, although he is largely retired these days.
From the start, “The vision was to bring the latest and most innovative technology to market,” and over the decades, the business has helped introduce the Walkman, Discman, flat-screen televisions, and Blu-ray players. It has worked with celebrities such as Michael Jackson and Elizabeth Taylor and corporate clients such as Disney and DreamWorks.
“We built a reputation as a trusted destination for cutting-edge electronics… but I knew customer service was also very important. I made sure all my salespeople were trained, and we went after the niche market, all high-end,” Akhtarzad explains. “I would say our success has come from having good employees. Some of them have been with me since the beginning. We’ve created an environment where the employees love to contribute to the business. They love working here.”
At present, roughly 150 people work here, with 100 employees at Video & Audio Center and the rest at Just One Touch. There is frequent overlap between these segments, however, with Video & Audio Center borrowing resources from Just One Touch and vice versa.
And Akhtarzad takes a keen interest in new hires. “Don’t be a salesman; always listen to a customer’s needs and give them the solution they’re looking for,” he tells new employees. Other rules for store staff: no upselling and no using incomprehensible technological jargon that leaves a customer baffled and frustrated. Also, a tidy appearance is a must. In his view, being poorly groomed suggests someone cannot take care of themselves, much less take care of an elaborate video or audio system.
Such concerns are understandable as, “We are a growing company. Every year we grow by 10 to 20 percent,” he shares.
In addition to its brick-and-mortar sites, Video & Audio Center and Just One Touch offer a comprehensive website. At first, the website primarily served as a platform for manufacturers to display their wares and a convenient vehicle for informing potential customers about what was in stock. Gradually, the site began to generate its own share of business as customers became more comfortable making online transactions. “Everything we carry is available for us to sell online, except custom solutions.”
The company has also benefited from its membership in the Home Technology Specialists of America (HTSA) buying group, an “industry member-driven trade consortium” consisting of home technology retailers and custom integrators, to which Video & Audio Center has belonged for approximately 25 years.
Joining the HTSA “was the best thing for us,” states Akhtarzad. “We have group meetings, talk about the next technology.”
Indeed, staying abreast of developments in the consumer technology world is a point of pride. Roughly a decade ago, he sensed that voice-activated controls would become a huge trend and ever since, the team has provided products in this category as they became available.
This kind of attention to detail matched with excellent service has earned the firm kudos from industry peers. In 2022, the Akhtarzad brothers were inducted into the Consumer Technology Hall of Fame, which is organized by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), a trade association representing the U.S. consumer technology industry.
In 2023, Video & Audio Center was ranked number one on CE Pro’s list of 100 Top Custom Retailers in both California and the United States. CE Pro magazine is the self-described “leading trade publication for professionals involved in the custom electronics business,” and the company has repeatedly earned the number one spot for California custom retailers and been a top five fixture on the list of retailers across the entire U.S.
Indeed, doing big things remains a company staple. At the time we spoke, Video & Audio Center was gearing up for a huge Super Bowl party at a country club. This invitation-only soiree would welcome “high-end consumers from real estate, directors, producers, surgeons, doctors,” he says, with plans for valet parking, barbecue, drinks, a family atmosphere, and of course, an array of awe-inspiring OLED, wall, and frame televisions from sponsor Samsung to watch the game.
Akhtarzad is not currently pondering any new branches outside of the city, although he says, “I am open to franchising or to teaching other people who would like to get into this business to collaborate.” Any potential areas outside of Los Angeles would have to retain the company’s service-oriented ethos, he adds, offering a rosy forecast for the future. “Five years from now, I believe technology like transparent TV, and other technologies I’m working with manufacturers on, is going to flourish… Dedicated home theatres are on the increase.” Video & Audio Center will be there every step of the day.
