Sound meets style at Aimé Leon Dore's New York HQ with Sonos audio system

Aimé Leon Dore (ALD) is a fashion and lifestyle brand based out of New York City, known for its high-quality products that blend classic and contemporary styles inspired by the city's diverse culture. Sound has always been integral to its brand DNA as well as its immersive in-store experience, using music to create vibrant spaces for customers that extend from elevated retail into curated experiences with DJ sets and hi-fi listening bars. When the brand opened its new two-story office headquarters in Soho, it sought to bring that same cultural energy to the workplace. Sonos Era 100 Pro speakers were selected to create an enhanced atmosphere, encouraging creativity and collaboration.

Challenge

Technology design firm OneButton and Aimé Leon Dore's Manager of IT & Environmental Systems, Philip Rivelli, were tasked with integrating high-quality, unobtrusive audio. The quintessential New York loft boasts high ceilings and oversized windows that flood the space with natural light, alongside original features including exposed brick. The system had to balance acoustics, aesthetics, and easy management, while also being installed quickly to avoid workflow disruption.

The Solution

"Sonos stood out as the only high-performance PoE (Power over Ethernet) speakers designed for seamless integration into a broader audio ecosystem," says Matt Emmi, Co-Founder, OneButton.

"This, plus outstanding performance and design flexibility, made it the clear choice, eliminating the trade-off between long speaker-wire runs or dropping 120V power at each location." The system is powered and networked using Netgear M4250-26G4XF-POE+ switches, simplifying management and control across the multi-zone audio network. "By Monday morning, the system was fully operational, and our zones were set," remarks Rivelli.

"Music is played and controlled via an iPad on each floor, making it easy for anyone to use. The system also allows us to easily connect analog sources such as TVs, which is extremely useful during meetings."

19 Sonos Era 100 Pro loudspeakers were installed across two floors and divided into multiple zones, with Sonos' Trueplay room-tuning technology ensuring clear, balanced sound. "We were able to calibrate the speakers to the acoustics of the room, accommodating the size of the space," says Emmi.

"With open floor plans on both levels, the speakers' wide coverage pattern effectively fills the space with homogenous audio," he continues. "Built-in sensors adapt to the loudspeaker's orientation, ensuring natural and evenly spread sound, while three class-D digital amplifiers in each speaker ensure premium audio quality."

"Easy system control and dedicated zones mean multiple speakers can work together in sync," explains Rivelli. "This flexibility means each zone can play different music and volume can be individually managed to create the right atmosphere, from quieter office spaces to lively communal areas." 

Pro-grade surface mounts and cable management provide stability and a clean finish. "The Sonos system met all technical and aesthetic goals, delivering premium audio that blends seamlessly into ALD’s creative environment," Emmi concludes. "It has transformed the office into a dynamic, energizing space, with music becoming a natural extension of the brand's culture and identity."

"The Sonos Era 100 Pro represents a new benchmark in commercial audio integration," emphasizes Emmi. "By streamlining wiring to a single connection per speaker and leveraging PoE, we can achieve exceptional performance and reliability while maintaining a pristine digital signal. This innovation allows us to deliver a level of audio fidelity and precision that was once out of reach for retrofit applications. We couldn't be happier with the outcome." The installation successfully brings ALD's deep-rooted connection to music into its headquarters, embedding sound as an integral part of the brand's creative culture.