# Demant

Demant A/S is a Danish multinational company involved with hearing care, hearing aids, audiometric equipment and personal communication devices.

## History

The business was founded in 1904 by Hans Demant, under the name Oticon. After his death in 1910, his son William Demant took over.
Already before World War I, Oticon increased its sales volume to cover Scandinavia and Saint Petersburg. In the twenties and thirties, a network of agents was established in Europe.
During World War II, Oticon started its own production due to the scarcity of goods from other countries.
In 1957, William and his wife Ida Emilie donated the Demant family's shares in the company to the Oticon Foundation, which is now called the William Demant Foundation. The Foundation's general aim is charity, with particular emphasis on helping people with a hearing impairment, and the Foundation is the main shareholder in the company, with a stake of app. 61%.
During the 1990s, the company expanded further, buying the Swiss hearing aid manufacturer Bernafon, Phonic Ear, the headset manufacturer DanaCom and Interacoustics.
In 1995, the company was listed on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange. In 1997, it was decided to change the name of the company from Oticon Holding A/S to William Demant Holding A/S, because it was considered disadvantageous to use the same name for both the corporate group and for one of its businesses. In 2019, the company changed its name to Demant A/S.
In February 2017, it was announced that then-President and CEO Niels Jacobsen would step down after 25 years in charge of the company. Instead, he would become CEO of William Demant Invest A/S. Since 1 April 2017, the company has been led by President and CEO Søren Nielsen and by board chairman Niels B. Christiansen.
Demant is headquartered in Smørum (northwest of Copenhagen) and had sales of DKK 13.9 billion in 2018.
In April 2022, Demant announced it had agreed to sell Oticon Medical to Australian company Cochlear Limited for DKK850 million and would exit the hearing implant business.
In June 2022, Demant acquired Chinese retailer ShengWang at a cost of RMB 1.8 billion. In November 2022, Demant acquired Japanese retailer MTHA.

## Business units

The company focuses on these business units:

### Hearing aids

    Oticon, Bernafon, Sonic Innovations, Neurelec (cochlear implants, being divested) and Oticon Medical (bone anchored hearing aids) sold to Australian company Cochlear Limited for DKK850 million.

### Audiologist / Hearing aid sales

    Audika (Australia, Germany, Denmark, France, Hungary, Italy, New Zealand, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland)
    Telex (Brazil)
    HearingLife (Canada, United States)
    SWTL (China)
    Acoustica Medica (Greece, Portugal)
    Hidden Hearing (Ireland, United Kingdom)
    MTHA (Japan)
    Hearing Partners (Malaysia, Singapore)
    Van Boxtel (Luxembourg)
    Idis (Turkey)
    Medton-Hedim (Israel)

### Diagnostic instruments

    Maico Diagnostics, Interacoustics, Amplivox, Grason-Stadler, MedRx, Inc., AudioScan and Inventis.

### Personal communication

    Phonic Ear, Sennheiser Communications (defunct), EPOS

### Instrument dealers

    Gordon Stowe & Associates Inc., Northeastern Technologies Group Inc., Midlantic Technologies Group Inc.