Stone Percussion: The Next Chapter
One year ago this week, Andrew Stenvall called me with an idea that would eventually become the basis for Stone Percussion.
At the time, Andrew was getting his Master’s at USC for Percussion Performance, and he was frustrated with the lack of diversity in the xylophone mallets he was using for performances and auditions. He began prototyping new mallets in his bedroom by cutting apart old pairs and Frankensteining together with materials from other mallets, or with raw materials he could find online. After a few months of experimentation, we had that pivotal conversation about his ideas and Stone Percussion was born. Ultimately, we formed the business out of a desire to become a trusted resource for musicians looking for quality product to support their craft.
Early on Andrew and I realized we would need to make our products look as good online as they look in real life, so we recruited the incredibly talented Hojoon Kim as our lead designer. Hojoon put together some teaser images, and by April, I had a splash page up on our website (still viewable at stonepercussion.github.io). We finished making the first batch of prototypes, and in June, we produced a recording of a piece I wrote for three xylophones that featured early versions of our flagship Stone X mallet.
As we approached our August 1st launch date, I worked to set up the full version of the website by hacking together a Squarespace landing page, and a Shopify store section. I set up the Shopify site using Shopify’s Timber framework, and you can browse/fork the code for the live site on our github page.
On August 1st, I directed www.stonepercussion.com to our Squarespace page and we released a series of videos to promote the launch. We launched with a single variation of Stone X available for purchase, and we were humbled by the orders that came in those first two months. Truly, without the validation from our early customers, we would not still be here one year in!
All of the orders we received in 2015 were made in Andrew’s 15' x 15' bedroom. By lofting his bed, we were able to fit a crew of four people to help thread shafts, cast balls, and assemble pairs. Corey Smith, our lead product engineer (and gracious roommate of Andrew), streamlined our manufacturing process, and made iterative improvements to each pair. However, all pairs in the first two batches were sold below cost and we had to outsource a few key steps in the production process because we lacked the proper machines and space.
By late November, after we released the full line of the Stone X mallets, we began to see the inevitable consequences of outsourcing key components of our process. Our handle manufacturer started quoting two-to-three month turnarounds for our next batch, and despite our efforts to find a replacement machinist, we couldn’t find a sustainable substitute. At the same time, we took an Air Quality Index reading from Andrew’s bedroom. It was beyond safe levels after a production run and we knew that if we continued manufacturing in a residential space, we were putting everyone’s health at risk.
These two factors brought us to a decision point. Either we had to surrender, refund our backlogged customers and wind down the business, or we had to double down, find a suitable production facility, and purchase the machines we needed to bring everything in-house. Emboldened by the positive feedback from our peers and customers, we knew the only choice was to take Stone Percussion to the next level.
We spent the following three months locking down warehouse space, setting up the new shop, and raising money from investors (there’s still some room in our convertible note! Email me at trevor@stonepercussion.com for more info.)
All of our work has led us to a very exciting moment. On Wednesday of this week, we will cast the first batch of Stone X Customs mallets, as well as the first batch of a new line of mallets we are announcing today, the Stone X Elements. The Elements are a subset of our Stone X line at a reduced price, and we hope that this will enable many of our supporters to take the leap and give Stone Percussion mallets a shot.
Coming very soon are new products that will broaden our store’s offering, as well as a new video series that features artists of all types doing very exciting things.
As we continue forward, I know that we will grow Stone Percussion into the grand vision that Andrew and I had when we first started making plans. We stand for empowering artists by providing them with the best tools of the trade and with information that expands the conversation of what it means to be a creative professional. Stay tuned! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and here on Medium.
