theculturalconnect.com | Steven Vasquez

Company

ReQuest, Inc.

Founded

March 1998

Website

www.request.com

Name, Title

Steven Vasquez
Founder

Age

Hometown

Kings Park, New York

Current residence

Ballston Lake, New York

Education

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
MBA (1998)
MS in Computer Networks (1998)
BS in Electrical Engineering (1996)

Work Experience

ReQuest, Inc., Founder
(1998 to Present)

Ethnicity

Columbian

About the company

In 1998, ReQuest introduced the world's first digital music server for home entertainment and media systems to the consumer electronics custom installation market (CEDIA). Today, the company continues to be the leading manufacturer of this category in the CEDIA distribution channels. ReQuest's products are distributed around the globe and our dealers are regarded as some of the most talented and professional in the world. The company has grown to 50 employees and we enjoy being regarded as having the best service in the industry. Recently, ReQuest was ranked by Inc. Magazine as one of the top 500 fastest-growing private businesses in America for the second year in a row.

Our current product lines include a wide range of AudioReQuest audio music servers from the N.Series entry level single zone, popular multi-zone F.Series to our ultra-high end audiophile S.Series flagship. For video enthusiasts, ReQuest offers the award winning VideoReQuest DVD controller, which manages up to 1600 DVDs on external DVD changers.

ReQuest's latest innovation is a first-of-its-kind multiroom audio system based on our music server technology. The iQ System offers true plug and play installation, superb audio playback to as many as eight rooms and the ability to stream content to up to eight more via wired or wireless home network. Key elements of the system are an Intelligent media server, 16-channel multiroom amplifier and a multiroom tuner. Options include speakers, keypads, and tabletop control. This system recently won the "Best Overall Product & Multi-room Audio System" Award at the EH Expo trade show.

ReQuest sells through the CEDIA custom installer channel to dealers who install complete audio, video, home theater, and control systems for affluent and famous customers who spend anywhere from $15K to $4M to automate their media lifestyle.

What are your day-to-day responsibilities?

As an entrepreneur, it is necessary to wear many hats throughout the life of a company. In the early days, I played the role of CEO, Marketing, Product Manager, and janitor. Today we have several professionals running the company and I handle Business Development, Marketing, Hardware, and Product Strategy.

Most notable milestones

Winners of the First Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (www.rpi.edu) $25K Student Business Plan Competition in 1998
Winners of the First $100K Tech Valley Business Plan Competition in 2000
2000 Popular Science Best of What's New Grand Award in Electronics
2000 Sound & Vision Reviewer's Choice Award
2001 CEDIA Best Audio Product of the Year
2003 Albany Capital Business Review 40 Under 40
2004 CEDIA Best Video Product of the Year
2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 Electronic House Product of the Year
2006 Dealerscope 40 Under 40
2006 EHX Best Overall Product
2006 EHX Best Multi-Room Audio System for $1,000 per Zone

What's the niche?

ReQuest competitive advantages includes:

Original Innovators of the Media Server market with over 8 years experience
Only Products with 2-way iTunes Synchronization
Only Products with Multi-Location Synchronization
Drag and Drop Touch Interface
ARQLink Central server reporting tool for dealers to track, monitor, and service all their clients ReQuest products (and other products)
Upgradable Removable hard drives
Automatic redundant backup servers
Patent, just recently approved by the US, which covers automatic synchronization for media files between one server and other servers, portable players, and automobile players, both locally and over the Internet.
Technical Support ranked #1 in the custom industry by Inside Track.

What's the biggest challenge?

There are many challenges that go through a company at different stages of growth, whether its inventory, competition, employees, quality, distribution, or financing (especially financing).

These days, our challenge is to continue developing innovative products (like our new iQ System) that will lead us into the future. With looming competition not only from various competitors in our industry, but also from the Apple iPod, we have to continuously innovate to provide unique solutions to fully compel and entertain our customers in ways that no one else can.

Our current iQ whole house music distribution system has been designed so that anyone in a family can easily operate it to listen to their favorite music while others can listen to their own music in other rooms of the house. Taking it a step further, we provide you the ablity to stream your music stored on your AudioReQuest while away from home no matter where you are—work or even your hotel room. And, if you have a second house, our NetSync technology allows you to automatically sync your music from one component to the other over the Internet.

Our challenge now is to change our business to support and grow this new initiative in our current CEDIA channel, and branch into the home building market, multi-unit dwellings, and commercial markets such as hotels, restaurants, franchises, and casinos.

What's in store for the future?

In addition to growing our whole house audio distribution products, we will continue to develop products that provide a complete solution for our customers based on their feedback and passion of our products.

Some considerations include whole-house video distribution and extensive classical music support.

Who would you like to be contacted by?

I would welcome contact by anyone interested in starting a new consumer electronics business who is in need of advice and pointers.

In addition, I would like to talk with anyone in the home building market, CEDIA, consumer electronics, and commercial markets, who believes they should do business with ReQuest.

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Best way to keep a competitive edge

The best way to keep competitive in an ever changing market environment for any business is to listen to your customers. Figure out what their pain points are, what costs them extra time and money, and what would make them happy. Many companies make the mistake of creating technology first and then pushing it to customers and trying to mold it to fit the customers need after the fact. Instead, understand your customers problems, and create a cost effective solution that solves the problem.

As a side note, sometimes your customers will provide actual solutions that may be very valuable, but it may also be limited to what they know at that time. It is more important to truly understand the problem, and then using all the creativity in you, your team, and you customers to come up with the best solutions.

Guiding principle in life

Passion, plain and simple. It is true in life and in business. If you are going to be an entrepreneaur or even have a career, it is better to have passion in what you are doing, so that even in the bad times your passion will make you go foward and lead you to success.

Many people make the mistake of having money lead you, such as a higher paying job or a fad technology boom (Dot Com days), but if you are not passionate about what you do, it is so much easier to quit when things turn rough. That is one of the reasons why 95% of all businesses fail early.

So find out what you are passionate about, whether its cooking, art, writing, planes, technology, games, flowers, etc., and find something that is related. If you are starting a business, find a hole where people are complaining how things could be easier, and then go for it.

A great side effect of having passion is that over time, you automatically build experience until you become an industry expert.

Yardstick of success

Happiness, another easy one word answer. If you like waking up in the morning and going in to work everyday, then you are in a very good place. If you are happy with your friends and family, then you are in a very good place.

Many people make the mistake of thinking money is success. I have seen many people with more money than they know what to do with, but are completely miserable at work or at home or they are alone.

At the same time, it is very possible to be happy and have money. Money should not be the goal, just a natural side effect of passion.

Goal yet to be achieved

I am young and single, so I guess finding the right person to share my life with. That, and starting many other companies that build products people are passionate about.

Best practical advice

If you are going to start a company, either start it early in life when you do not have much to lose, such as right after college, or start it later in life such as when the kids are old enough to be on their own.

Also, it is good to have a partner or two who share your passion.

Supportive words from a family member or friend on your venture

My family has always been supportive. Of course, in the beginning, there was the question of getting a normal job to pay the bills, but that went away with support as things progressed.

Mentor(s) and why?

We were lucky to have some excellent mentors from the beginning. Since we started at RPI, we had very supportive professors that helped us along. We were also very lucky in securing investments from good sources who also provided us with excellent board members who were more about supporting us than just trying to get rich quick.

What motivated you to get started?

Well, I always knew that I wanted to start a business since I was 11, I just didn't know in what. I planned my education around this, by going to RPI which has a very strong entrepreneurship program and spirit. They are one of the first campuses with an incubator center. There I focused on Electrical Enginnering and business, since I always had a passion on gadgets and business. I also love to solve problems in creative ways.

So in college, when I needed to set up a party for my MBA friends, I would gather up a bunch of MP3s (back before there was a Napster, iPod, or even Rio) and make playlists for getting the girls to dance. Well, it worked, and I figured there should be a way to do this without needing a person to worry about the complexities of a computer. I worked out the details with my business partner, John Reine, and the rest was history.

Like best about what you do?

What I truly like about what I do is the feedback from the customer. In the early days when the idea was still in process, we set up a message board for our customers to discuss and give us ideas. There were literally dozens of posts a day from entusiastic customers just raving about the idea. After we shipped, we had amazing testimonials that still bring tears to my eyes. Knowing that we created a product that not only created such happy customers, but also created dozens of jobs that didn't exist before is one of the greatest feelings I have ever gotten.

Like least about what you do?

As with any company, there are always growing pains with success. Some people can handle change, while many can not. It is always painful when those who can not accept change hit a wall and realize that they must move on.

At age 10, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Ah, as I stated in a previous question, at age 11 I knew I wanted to start a business. Except back then I had grander ideas, and starting a business was the first step towards world domination. :)

Now I am just looking for happiness.

What was your first job?

My first real job was an internship at Pitney Bowes during college. I highly recommend going for a co-op as a college student, because at school, its all about theory, and the only way you can actually experience real world applications is in a real job. I learned a lot about the dynamics of a real company, experienced the whole product development cycle from concept to near production (idea got canned), and most importantly the interaction and communication within a team environment.

More than anything, it told me if this is what I wanted to do with my life or not during school rather than after graduating.

Biggest pastimes outside of work

There's life outside of work? I guess friends, movies, games, and of course family. I have several other interests in hobbies, such as hiking, camping, skiing, dancing, etc, just not enough time.

Person most interested in meeting

The "customer", because you always learn so much from them.

Leader in business most interested in meeting

Steve Jobs, because he knows how to reinvent himself over and over again.

Three interesting facts about yourself

1. I love the Daily Show/Colbert Report.
2. I rarely sleep.
3. I have a cat called Elsie.

Three characteristics that describe you

1. Driven,
2. Yet conservative,
3. Yet liberal.

Three greatest passions

1. Business
2. Gadgets
3. The ladies ;)

Favorite book

Crossing the Chasm by Geoffrey Moore. Required reading for those who want to bring a product from a niche to a success.

Favorite cause

I have many, but my current one is finding alternative cheap energy for everyone.

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