Chairman Povl-André Bendz reflects on key milestones and the path ahead
September 18, 2021 – One year after Audientes’ initial public offering of stock (IPO), Chairman Povl-André Bendz gives his view on milestones reached, challenges in a fast-paced everyday and plans for unfolding the growth possibilities.
During the first year as a listed company, Audientes has been focused on the launch of its cutting-edge, self-fitting hearing aid, Ven™, as well as a companion smartphone app. In a short time, Audientes has matured from a development company to a ready-to-sell company in the Indian market.
Has the IPO been a success for Audientes?
“Overall, the listing at Nasdaq First North Growth Market Denmark has lived up to all our expectations, and we are grateful for the loyalty and support our investors have shown us. Since the IPO, we have also noticed a much stronger awareness among distributors, healthcare professionals and potential end users supporting our launch strategy for Ven™.”
Why did the board of directors decide to go public?
“When we decided to go the IPO route, it was a question of strengthening the capital structure and liquidity resources, and at the same time leverage the marketing value that comes with being a Nasdaq-listed company. The everyday life of a listed company calls for structures and firm goal-setting to meet our shareholders’ expectations, which again means a valuable professionalizing of the whole organization paving the way for organic growth and profitability.”
Looking back which highlights / milestones stand out the most?
“In this short period, key staff members have been brought on board, logistics have been built up and a whole platform for global sales has been organized to ready our flagship product, Ven™, for market. The rapidity of Audientes expansion has been impressive. We have had so many ‘firsts’ including detailed, communicative quarterly and annual reports that keep our more than 2700 shareholders informed about the company’s direction.”
What about challenges faced since the IPO?
“Introducing a new product, hiring a new team and a getting ready for a new market is hard work, so there haven’t been many ‘typical working weeks’ over the last 12 months, and the entire team has had to perform at a very high level. We are still a small company, and therefore our success has been predicated on our ability to prioritize. We started the year with an extensive wish list of the things we wanted to achieve, and we’ve had to make tough choices about refining that list so that we could focus on core products and services.”
What is Audientes top priority right now?
“A strong pre-ordering campaign and to achieve our sales target for 2021. The distribution network is being expanded week by week, the number of markets is going to expand year by year, and we believe we will see a solid return on our initial sales efforts. India represents an important opportunity for Audientes’ continued expansion and success because of its sheer size and scale. The Indian market is still relatively untapped compared to China, the European Union or the United States, and we’re confident in our ability to gain a foothold there.”
Where do you see Audientes in the coming years?
“In five years, we hope to be an exciting growth company listed on the main exchange with a tag of profitable growth company. Our success to date has been built on strong partnerships with our investors, customers and suppliers; we look forward to many more examples of these mutually beneficial relationships in the years and are very proud that we have already become a real alternative to the entrenched players in the hearing aid market like Demant and GN, even for institutional investors.”