Seated across from us in Devialet’s new Singapore flagship store is Jacques Demont, the French audio brand’s chief executive. The room we are in is silent for now, but a quick scroll and tap is all it takes to turn the space into a veritable concert hall.
Demont picks out a song, then invites us to lean back and listen. Obliging, we close our eyes and take in the sounds coming at us from just about every angle imaginable. It’s almost like that Dolby jingle that plays before a movie at the cinema, just a lot less eerie.
The song ends. We open our eyes and instinctively check behind us for a set of speakers we swore we heard. But we quickly realise the only devices in this room are in front of us — and only a couple of them were turned on for this demonstration.
So goes the magic of the Devialet experience. “We have 60 engineers in Paris working on the development of new technology to [create] a more immersive sound,” Demont explains.
The company itself is relatively young, being founded in 2007. It has since expanded around the world and the new flagship, located in the Grand Hyatt Singapore, is part of that global strategy.
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“We’re very happy to be here,” says Demont of Devialet’s presence in Singapore. The brand first entered the city-state in 2016 and opened two standalone boutiques here a year later: one in Marina Bay Sands, and the other — which has since closed — in Ion Orchard.
Demont says business in Singapore is “booming”, with two factors contributing to Devialet’s performance here. First, he says, is continued consumer spending: “People love retail; people are still going shopping.” The second is a strong music culture, which drives demand for high-quality audio equipment.
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The new flagship is targeted at capturing this demand. The 1,870 sq ft space has been designed “as an immersive showcase of the Devialet experience”, says Demont, adding that it houses the brand’s full range of products, from soundbars to earphones. The store also boasts Devialet’s first “listening room”, a space that’s been tailored for audio enjoyment.
Scaling sound
When it comes to product development, Demont sums up Devialet’s approach in a single sentence: “Honour the past, build the future.”
On this front, artificial intelligence (AI) is set to play a big role in Devialet’s future. Demont says that as consumers seek out more customised options across product categories, AI presents the way forward for the company. “The ambition is for our products to adapt their sound to what you like and what you love.”
Already, AI has been embedded in launches such as the Mania portable speaker, which uses four microphones to optimise its sound for its surroundings. When placed near a wall, the Mania turns its back-facing speakers into a support for those facing forward, ensuring that the sound produced is full, rather than muffled.
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To further increase customisability, Devialet offers a mobile app, as well as an “advanced configurator” on its website; both of these allow users to tailor and fine-tune their home soundscapes for their needs.
Products like the Mania, which was launched in 2022, are a continuation of Devialet’s nearly 20 years in product development. The brand launched its first amplifier, the D-Premier, in 2010. Since then, it has filed over 250 patents, covering areas from acoustic engineering to signal processing and manufacturing processes.
All this has culminated in the Astra, which was unveiled last October. “All our different technologies — everything — are inside this simple and small product,” says Demont. Small enough to fit on a console, the Astra holds a pre-amplifier, amplifier, DAC (digital-to-analog converter), streamer and phono stage.
The device is available in single- and dual-unit configurations, with an Art Deco-inspired look that is at once minimalist and visually interesting. Emmanuel Nardin, co-founder and chief design officer at Devialet, says the Astra’s simplicity is “the result of meticulous attention to detail, with engineers and designers tirelessly redefining the standards for design”.
Striking a chord
Continuing its partnership with the Opéra National de Paris, which began seven years ago, Devialet has also created a special edition of the Astra. This version is wrapped almost entirely in hand-applied 23-carat gold leaf, and follows similar special editions, including of the Mania, Phantom speaker and Gemini II earbuds.
Such partnerships are now a growing part of Devialet’s DNA as it seeks to create more unique products while reaching a broader audience.
Demont notes that consumers like to see a point of difference when making a purchase, and this is something the brand is continually bringing to the market. “These kinds of partnerships, where we share the same values, are very important for our visibility and for the development of the company.”
He cites as an example the brand’s collaboration with Fendi in 2024, where an “FF” monogrammed Mania speaker was unveiled at the fashion house’s fall/winter 2024 runway show. More recently, the company worked with Chinese appliance company Hisense to develop three new product lines with a “Tuned by Devialet” certification.
Teasing further partnerships down the line, Demont says there are “a lot of things” going on at Devialet, without going into details.
‘Wow effect’
Devialet is also continuing its global expansion. Just before the new Singapore flagship’s opening, Demont was in the United Arab Emirates to launch a store in the Dubai Mall. The brand has since opened another location in Kuala Lumpur’s Pavilion shopping centre. Demont says more stores are in the works, with a “strong pipeline for retail” in Asia Pacific, China and the Middle East.
Looking ahead, Demont says he is focusing on keeping a balance between “experience, lifestyle and technology”.
Rather than chasing trends, he says the company is prioritising its core. This, he adds, means building products that elicit an immediate reaction. “This is one of the key pillars that I defined one year ago when I took the lead at the company. This ‘wow effect’ is crucial … We really need to bring something different to the customer.”
Ultimately, Demont returns to the idea of building an experience around the universe of Devialet, from the products themselves to the retail journey. “It’s very important that when people arrive in the store, they feel like they arrive in the Devialet atmosphere,” he shares.
Though the world of fancy speakers may not be for everyone, the point is to create something that will undoubtedly stick in one’s mind. “You will remember it, you will talk to your friends about the experience, about the things you’ve seen here — and that is what we want.”
