Sr. sound designer and engineer Chris Stangroom has signed with the recently launched audio post and sound design studio Sound Goods exclusively for advertising and branded content assignments.
Stangroom got his start at Goldcrest Post, which he joined as a sound engineer, assisting on various studio tasks and moving up the ladder as he built his skills and experience. Not long after that he moved to Hobo Audio, where he remained for the next decade and a half, graduating from sr. engineer and sound designer to head of audio and eventually sr. VP. In that role he not only handled client sessions but also took on studio management and business development. He left Hobo in 2022 and launched his own studio, STJ Sound Studios.
Sound designer/mixer Weston Fonger, a partner in Sound Goods, has known Stangroom for over 15 years, and said there’s always been a high level of mutual admiration and respect between the two. “Chris has a great understanding of not just the technical side of what we do, but the human side as well, which is extremely important to Angelina [Powers, Sound Goods’ partner/EP] and me,” he said.
Added Stangroom, “We’re both pretty deep into the audio post world of advertising, and that’s been a common thread for us, but it’s turned out that we share a lot more in terms of values and interests. I’ve respected his creative approach and passion for the business for a long time, and I’ve only seen him grow and get better at both.”
Over the past few years, Fonger and Powers have asked Stangroom to cover jobs for them at their prior home, Vinylmix, when Fonger wasn’t available. “We always received such great feedback after these sessions, with some of our clients even asking if we could bring him on board,” said Powers. “When we launched Sound Goods and thought about who we wanted on our team, Chris was at the top of the heap. We’ve always appreciated Chris’s laid back demeanor and knowledgeable approach to the work and we’re sure that our clients will, too.”
For Stangroom, joining the Sound Goods team represents an opportunity to dig deeper into audio post work for brands and agencies. He also believes that Fonger and Powers understand how the entire postproduction environment is changing, and he’s eager to join them in their new business model.
“When it comes to the direction of my career, Weston and Angelina have an incredible footing in the advertising industry, which provides a great platform on which I can expand my client base,” Stangroom stated. “And they share my belief that the postproduction industry has gone through an extensive restructuring. The world is changing faster than we’ve ever seen before, and we should expect nothing less than creative solutions to the new ‘normals’ that arise. Even before the pandemic, we saw the industry shifting to fewer and fewer client-attended sessions, and I know from first-hand experience that physical studios have become more difficult to maintain. With Sound Goods, we’re putting all of our focus on servicing our clients, not feeding work to a post facility.”
Fonger added, “Under our model we want to collaborate with like-minded artists that have a solid home studio setup but who are willing to work on-site at some of our affiliated studios as needed. This arrangement allows us to structure our working relationships differently than what has been traditionally possible.”
For Sound Goods, the addition marks the next step in its maturation since launching earlier this year with Fonger and mixer Jarrett Farkas handling the workload. “Bringing Chris on board makes this a very exciting time for all of us,” said Powers, “as we prepare to take on even more projects and tackle new challenges. He understands this business and the importance of gaining confidence and trust from our clients. It makes me so happy to see people’s faces brighten up when they hear me mention his name.”
