business
Headphones to drift off to sleep in, or run a mile in
■ A Pennsylvania family physician's experience having trouble falling asleep inspired her to create a different kind of headphone.
By Victoria Stagg Elliott — Posted March 7, 2011
Making sidelines pay
Doctors who branched out beyond running their practice tell why they did it, how they did it, and what you should know before you do it.
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Name: Wei-Shin Lai, MD
Specialty: Family medicine
Location: Bellefonte, Pa.
Company: AcousticSheep, which sells SleepPhones, headphones Dr. Lai designed to be comfortable for sleeping (link). Another product is available for runners (link).
Annual revenue: The company brought in more than $600,000 in 2010.
Why she started the business: In 2007, Dr. Lai was on call and had a hard time getting back to sleep after a 3 a.m. phone call from the emergency department. She couldn't take sleep medication and wanted to calm down by listening to relaxing music without waking her husband, Jason Wolfe. But she didn't feel comfortable wearing headphones.
In collaboration with Wolfe, a computer game designer, she created SleepPhones, a pair of small speakers sewn into a fabric headband. The first 500 SleepPhones sold in 2007 were made by her and Wolfe. The company now employs a half-dozen part-time staff members. About 14,000 SleepPhones were sold in 2010. "I think we just have a really good product, and we have to keep going with this because it's helping a lot of people," Dr. Lai said.
In response to customer demand, she designed a version for runners called RunPhones that was launched in September 2010. They are intended for runners who want to listen to music but need to hear various street sounds for safety.
The products are primarily available online but can be found in some catalogs and retail outlets. The headphones are priced from $34.95 to $39.95, and accessories are available.
Why she continues to practice: "I love it! It's a nice break from business, and I prefer medicine over business. It's more satisfying."
Words of wisdom: "When your goal is to help people and provide a service, whether it's in medicine or in business, everybody will be rooting for you."
