AWARDS
Large Business of the Year
Kicker
Steve Irby is the president and founder of Stillwater Designs ,
maker of Kicker audio products for cars , boats , motorcycles , UTVs and portable Lifestyle products . His love of music was expressed during high school and college as a keyboard player in various rock ‘ n ’ roll bands . After a year of graduate study at Oklahoma State University , Irby founded Stillwater Designs with his roommate in 1973 .
In 1980 , Irby developed the original Kicker , a full range enclosed speaker system designed to fit behind the seat in a standard cab pickup truck . This was a first-of-its-kind product innovation which is why similar products of many brands came to be known generically as Kicker-boxes . This single innovative product launched a car audio brand with hundreds of models sold through a network of retail dealers in all 50 U . S . states and more than 60 countries on six continents .
Irby maintains a hands-on approach to every aspect of the remarkably successful business , but his passions remain in product design and development . No product receives final production authorization before Irby and his team approve the product through rigorous listening tests .
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COMMERCE | 2021 Profile Magazine of the Stillwater Chamber of Commerce