Inside the headphones' booming popularity, especially in Eastern Europe. Our OQ On the Street column goes over the ears.
Marshall is best known as the maker of amplifiers for many of the world's most legendary acts. The company began breaking into consumer sound with headphones and speakers a number of years ago, with their most successful pair of cans - the Major series - mirroring the shape of those famous amps.
They never quite took off in large developed markets, though, and timing was much to blame. The first Majors experiment came in 2010, but the Major II didn't arrive until 2016, the same year Apple reset the wireless headphone market with its minimalist in-ear Airpods.
For several years, the buds were the thing; the tiny yet bold amps decidedly were not. They were were most notable as the 'cool' option on the 'So, you forgot some electronics at home' shelf at the store by the gate at the airport.
Still, Marshall have kept at it, waiting that cycle out (and it appears to be over) with three additional Major versions, all hewing essentially to the same design. And it is these which are now utterly ubiquitous - almost impossibly so - in certain emerging markets.
State of Play: The numbers don't lie. The last time Marshall (which is privately held) broke down their sales growth by region, in their 2023 annual report, OQ found headphones now account for about a quarter of the company's business. Overall its net sales in EMEA that year bumped by 25 percent, and in Asia grew by 43 percent, compared to North America's smaller 11 percent. And that geographic difference is not a coincidence.
So, why are they so trendy in Belgrade and Budapest, or on the street outside OQ's office in Tbilisi? And is it a sign of something bigger? Maybe.
Yes, they are affordable relative to most higher-end or audiophile options, produce decent sound, and their fashion matches the brooding clubby European vibe. They've pursued effectively specific collaborations in marketing, and perhaps there is some level of "grey market" to account for.
But even that reinforces the point: this is a product and brand people - especially young people - in EMs want to be seen wearing, around their necks if not on their ears. That demographic sense gives stronger answer, too: the Majors may often be the first pair of 'serious' headphones for many users, timed with their first smartphone. And Gen Z, if not Gen Alpha now too, prefer a statement: Kevin Bacon wearing a Walkman, or their favorite footballer wearing Beats, to something that is more expensive and jammed in eardrums. They also prefer the optional wires. And most importantly: they can afford both the phone and the headphones. To make the choice.
OQ View: Headphones are directional, as a segment that crosses over consumer electronics and fashion. So often we hear of 'middle-income' economies in emerging markets; yet maybe the 2025 EM consumer is more mid-premium than we give credit for.
In that, Marshall seems to have found a very strong, if probably wildly unexpected, fit for what they imagined 15 years ago. And for all the waiting, it sounds and looks pretty good.
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