Happy New Year to our clients, readers and clients who turned friends over the years!
We want to take a moment to provide a recap report on the last year, the developments and challenges we all faced.
I remember clearly when my wife and I celebrated the start of the year 2020 with a morning coffee on New Year’s Eve. We wished each other a MUCH better 2020 as the year that went past was quite challenging for us. We got married just the year before and only 6 months before we started the business, EAR STUDIO. Even though the terrible fires in 2019 did not affect us directly, our mood was down with many thousands of others. All up we just had lots on our plates and a challenging 2019. No one could have guessed that the following year would top it all on every level. At this stage, I would like to give a BIG SHOUT OUT to the Dural Men’s SHED. The guys there have been incredible and even during the pandemic selflessly and tirelessly supported the recovery of bushfire affected areas in Cobargo and the South Coast. They have collected truckloads of donations, put in their own money and effort, and drove trucks down multiple times per week. Not only did they organise all sorts of products and tools, but these men also stayed down and physically helped the re-building of many lives! Well done, fellas!
The first six months at EAR STUDIO had been fantastic! The support we had received from friends and new clients had given us the needed affirmation that we were on the right path. It had given us the motivation to keep working towards excellence in every field of hearing care.
Our vision for EAR STUDIO was bigger than our rooms, so we decided in December 2019 to take on another office that came up for lease just next door. In January 2020 we renovated the new suite and started fitting out the new rooms. We planned for an opening in late February, so we employed a new staff member and looked forward to a great 2020. Well, you know what came next. In March I had to send my new staff member to work on projects from home and we all scrambled to make EAR STUDIO a COVID-Safe business. (Not-so-Fun-Fact: Just last week we received an order of disinfectant that we ordered back in April! But luckily, we had managed to get enough supplies beforehand to bring us safely to this point).
Over the middle of last year, it was the word “uncertainty” that was written on everyone’s head. I looked at my business plan for the first year. Searched if I had made plans for a global pandemic but did not find any reference to dealing with such a situation. So we threw the plan out the window. I cannot thank our loyal clients as well as our landlords and the Australian Government enough for the support we have received throughout 2020. Indeed, today I can say it has made us stronger, better equipped, and hopeful we can achieve in 2021 what we had planned for 2020. THANK YOU to all client who trusted us in 2020, who chose to support a small Australian business. We are extremely grateful. In return, we have employed one more Australian person to support us in 2021 and to increase our portfolio to help our clients.
While there were many challenges last year, we see that it has brought many good things. People are more aware that we are all human, we found that the friendliness and willingness to help each other has increased noticeably. It has strengthened the Aussie spirit of mateship, something that I, as a German, see as a privilege to experience!
So, thank you, again for all your support and we are looking forward to working with you in this new year, 2021.
Now, what’s next? Our plan for 2021 sees many great things happening. There was some quite innovative and new technology being developed throughout last year and we are looking forward to implementing it. Our plan to bring excellent hearing care and technology to the Hills district is unchanged and even 2020 did not manage to change our motivation and desire to be an outstanding supporter of our local community. With this in mind, we will be working hard on all areas that bring value to our clients. Our rule is that we only do business if what we do adds benefit to our client’s lives. Otherwise – we will not do it! There are many areas of hearing care that is close to our hearts and over the course of the next year, we will update you on what we plan. For now, we can only wish you a beautiful 2021. We sincerely hope that you will have a peaceful and stressless year. If there is anything that concerns you regarding your hearing, please drop in and let us have a look at what can be done. Last year has highlighted that we all need each other. Without effective communication, this is a lot more difficult. So, take that step and get your hearing checked if you have any signs of communication difficulty – we’d love to help you!
With best regards, Daniel and the team from EAR STUDIO
