Founder Spotlight: Michael Freedman

Michael Freedman’s career has been what he calls “a big happy accident.”

“Life shows you a lot of doors; the trick is to have the courage to walk through a few of them,” the serial entrepreneur shared.

While studying communications at the University of Windsor, Freedman worked full and part-time jobs at Home Depot and dive bars. Once he graduated, he asked Home Depot to transfer him, anywhere in B.C. At the time, he didn’t know anyone in his new home and lived in his truck for a few days before finding a place.

“Coming here from Ontario was like watching colour TV after only watching black and white,” Freedman shared. “I just wanted one last adventure before settling into adulthood. Luckily for me, that adventure has been ongoing for nearly 25 years. I may have settled into adulthood as I’m at the phase where I smoke a lot of meat and read a lot about history, but the curiosity that brought me here as a kid remains.”

After hitting the three-year mark with Home Depot, Freedman would leave to co-found his first venture, a coffee company called Vida Rainforest. As they struggled to hit the ground running, the then-first-time entrepreneur got a job at Future Shop to pay the bills. He would then get recruited by Monster Cable as a sales rep.

Fast forward to several years later, he would end up working for companies like Tannoy, Linn, and PM, witnessing the end of CD production players and digital streaming becoming the new medium. He’d also help to launch Beats by Dre into the Canadian market, even working as a bodyguard to Dr. Dre himself.

Next, Freedman would become one of the founders of Sonos Canada, helping to turn it into a massive brand with over 1,000 storefronts in the country. He’d rub shoulders with his favourite musicians, actors, and even hockey players.

“I met my heroes, sat in the studio with them, listened to their music at their own homes, and even was on stage with them.“

After nearly six years, Freedman would retire from Sonos as the travel and time away from family became too much to bear. While it was one of the hardest decisions he had ever made, he knew he wasn't at his best and that it was time to pass the torch on to the “next generation of band members.”

Freedman shared: “I retired from Sonos and assumed I would fade into the sunset. Write books. Smoke meat and enjoy some much-needed peace. I was wrong. I made it about three months before my wife looked at me and told me I was bored, had no purpose anymore, and had so much still to offer, I may have also been driving her and the kids nuts.”

Freedman would then “forcefully will his way into a new industry” with AI Technology & Design. Through his latest venture, he and his team are changing how the construction, design, and tech industries work together to ensure clients get the perfect tech experience for their spaces while offering what he’s found has been a missing element.

The serial entrepreneur sat with the Vancouver Tech Journal to share his journey from starting a coffee company to building Sonos Canada and creating AI Technology & Design during the pandemic, as well as the type of projects he’s tackling, like Canada’s first zero-carbon home.

Where were you born?

I was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and then moved all over Canada before spending high school and university in Ontario.

Do you have kids?

Sure do. I have two sons, 15 and 13, and a daughter, who is nine and pretty much runs the house. 

I also have three black labradors, Raine, Layle, and Rye, and a cool cat named Reggie. 

It’s a busy space filled with energy, interesting smells — some from dogs and some from teenagers — and a continuous layer of black fur on the floor. It's also filled with love, laughter and togetherness. 

One of the main reasons I left my old career was because I was away at least 150 nights a year and, frankly, was missing the chance to see my kids grow up.  

There will always be time to make money. The opportunity to be the kind of dad these kids deserve, well, that's a fleeting moment and passes far too quickly.  

What did you want to be when you were a kid?

When I was much younger, I wanted to be an astronaut. I think it was part of growing up in the ’80s. We all grew up on Star Wars. Then I realized how much math was needed and, to a lesser degree, the notable absence of X-wings, lasers and stormtroopers.

When I was older, I thought about comedy, acting, and radio. Of the three, radio was most appealing because I really love music. 

I also thought about a career in law, but by my third year in university, I was so hooked on Detroit radio that I wanted to be there, too. I switched my majors to communications to be on the air instead of in a courtroom.

Interesting fact: Decades after I walked away from my broadcasting career, I was fortunate enough to be named one of the co-hosts of a podcast from HAVAN called Measure Twice, Cut Once. It’s not lost on me that you don’t often get a chance to live out your childhood dreams in your late 40s, but here I am, working on season nine and loving every single second of it.

Favourite class in school?

I hated math and struggled with science, but I loved history.

Previous job before AI Technology & Design?

I spent many years working with cool, high-end audio brands. I was part of the team that brought Beats by Dre into the Canadian market and even worked as a bodyguard to Dr. Dre himself. Spoiler alert: he isn't a real doctor.

Over those 20 or so years, 11 were with Sonos. I was, and still am, so privileged to be part of that brand and watch it go from a tiny company to the powerhouse they are today. 

Being one of the founding fathers of Sonos Canada remains one of the highlights of my career and my life. Though I may have left the band, I continue to cheer on the brand and the people behind it. The world needs more music.

I retired from Sonos in 2017, took some time off to write a book, and founded AI Technology & Design in late 2019.

How do you commute?

At 6’5”, I don’t fit into many cars or SUVs, so I drive a pickup truck. I’m waiting for an EV with enough space and cannot wait to make that jump. That being said, I take transit where feasible.

What time do you normally wake up?

I usually try to wake up around 6:45 a.m. during the school year because getting teenagers out of bed and ready is arduous, but it does afford us many opportunities to show great patience.

What’s the first thing you do when you wake up?

I go downstairs, let my dogs out, and start a pot of coffee. If it’s nice out, I sit outside, even in the winter. 

This quiet time outside is where I can think about the previous day and what I can learn from it while also contemplating the day ahead and building a plan. 

Mostly it’s a quiet ritual of reflection.

What time do you normally sleep?

Ideally at 11 p.m. but most nights closer to 1 a.m.

What’s the last thing you do before bed?

Often, my wife and I just talk about whatever. 

It’s that short moment when there are no devices and kids and no one asking anything of us. 

Before we had the titles of mom or dad, we used to be just us. In a successful relationship, it’s important to focus on this, too, not just where we’re at. 

So, I use this time to talk, plan and enjoy a few laughs with my best friend. It works well; we just celebrated 18 years of marriage and have never been closer or more in love.

What are you reading right now or listening to?

For fun, I’m reading a book by Mark Volman and John Cody, a friend and a Canadian music legend. Mark played with the Turtles, Zappa, and others and was pivotal in the success of acts like Springsteen, U2, Duran Duran and The Ramones.  

I also firmly believe in growth and that if you’re not growing, you’re slowly dying. We grow as people, entrepreneurs, and as leaders. I have two books on my reading list for the summer: 10x is Easier than 2x and Buy Back Your Time.

As far as music goes, I listen to so much variety that it’s hard to nail down. I’m really digging Noah Kahon these days and rediscovering Big Sugar, a Canadian band that absolutely rocks. Speaking of Canadian musicians who rock, Lee Aaron has a new album of fantastic covers.

Where do you normally work from?

I have always worked from my home office in South Surrey. 

It afforded me a lot of flexibility when the kids were smaller and remains super convenient because other than meetings on job sites, I can get everything done right here. 

My office has a great little Hi-Fi system too, so when I need to get stuff done, I can turn up the music and really dig in. Plus, there are office dogs who come to visit me and ask me for snacks!

Elevator pitch — what does AI Technology & Design do?

We’re a group of tech lovers and experts who support award-winning builders and designers by serving as their fractional chief tech officers. 

Our role on the team is to ensure customers get the perfect tech experience for their spaces while offering unbiased information, which has been a key missing element of successfully adding tech. 

Too often, the people offering tech for homes make decisions based on margin, backend programs, profitability, and ease of installation instead of looking at what tech best enhances the design, the space, and how the occupants will live their lives.  

We don’t sell or install the tech. We use a discovery process to craft a customized solution that's easy to use and future-proof for decades. One of our groundbreaking projects includes the Phoenix House in Abbotsford, Canada’s first zero-carbon home. Another is a 1905 heritage home in Vancouver, bringing it up to net zero specification. There's a lot of building science involved, but also an acute awareness of how tech can help enhance specific goals.

We're changing how the construction, design and tech industries collaborate by leveraging a unique integrated design process. This involves working with the design team, build team, and homeowners in real-time instead of the typical siloed process. It also involves anticipating what the future might look like and engineer for that instead of where we are now. This is important because by the time current tech hits the shelf, there’s always something better on the horizon. 

Why did you start AI Technology & Design?

I spent many years watching the disconnect between tech brands, the retailers who sold and installed those products, and the construction and design industry. 

However, I was never in a position to effect the change needed to achieve the levels of collaboration that all parties deserve.  

The company was created on a dusky May evening when I was invited to a builder's home. This award-winning builder has been doing this for many years, and it's safe to say a leader in this space.  

He told me about his $900 high-end speakers, which didn’t sound very good. I listened to them and had to concur that they sounded horrible, so I climbed a ladder and pulled the speakers out of the ceiling. They were speakers that cost about $60 a pair.  

I left that home with a feeling of disgust. If people were preying on the trust of this builder in his own home, where else was this happening?

I had no intention of starting this or any other company. I wanted to work for another five years and make a few bucks to grow my record collection. However, seeing what I had just experienced, I drove home wondering if there was a better way to add technology to homes.

That’s when it came to me. The solution existed. We just had to look at other areas in construction to see what we needed to do.

A designer or architect creates the space, and builders execute those plans. We’re doing the same thing with tech: creating plans that any integration company can use to focus on execution. 

We work with the design and construction teams and their clients to build a plan so that multiple companies can compete for that business.

We also know a few tricks about how to lower the cost of adding tech, so we try to get rid of the top-heavy costs that can sometimes be associated with modern, connected homes.  

This usually brings the cost of the systems we design down by about 30 per cent. When you consider the cost of building in this market, that is a considerable savings. For a home of about 3,500 square feet, a solution can range from $30,000 to $150,000, so it's important to manage scope creep to ensure our clients are only getting what they need while creating an infrastructure that can grow and adapt with them as their lives change.

Have you raised any money?

With Sonos just having gone public, we were able to launch AI Technology & Design without investors or any debt in late 2019. 

I had a great team and had the wind at our backs. Sadly, the timing was not in our favour as the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

We had to let most of our team go and were left with no tangible revenue and very little funding to grow once things stabilized following 2020.

Since then, we have been bootstrapping this business with our savings but are very fortunate to be growing now and completely self-sufficient. 

It was not an easy or conventional path. Some days, I wonder if I should have invested in a Subway franchise instead, and then I remember what we do and why, cast those doubts aside, and focus on the people we work with.

What do you wish you knew when you started?

If I ever write a book about business, I’m going to call it What Not to Do. 

At the top of that list would be to try not to start a new company and class of trade just before a major pandemic. 

I had a full war chest of funds to launch, a great team of people, and some massive momentum moving into March 2020. 

By April, we had to let most of our team go, lost all of the momentum, and had to wait almost a full year to relaunch. 

There were a lot of nights filled with fear, insecurity and numerous questions about my sanity, but all of these were self-doubts.

While we struggled, I considered walking away many times. I had a lot of great job offers and was getting headhunted regularly, but by then, I couldn’t walk away. 

I was driven to keep going by a sense of purpose: the desire to help a couple of industries work well together. So we did what we had to do to keep the lights on. I’m glad we did.

What’s one of the biggest challenges you are facing right now?

As mentioned earlier, we had to respond to the pandemic.

After throwing money at the company for 12 months, we needed to step back and consider if this was even possible. 

Since 2020, I have been bootstrapping the company with savings until it was big enough to survive on its own. 

It hasn’t been easy. My entire family has all sacrificed to bring this company to life. We’re in growth mode now and slowly returning to where I had hoped we would be by the end of 2020. 

Good life lesson here when it comes to resilience, purpose, and patience. We didn’t give up, and while it has not been an easy path, all of us are committed to seeing this through. My kids are learning what it takes to grow a company and how much hard work is required to succeed.

Right now, my biggest challenges are scaling our team and ensuring we’re giving them the tools they need to succeed. 

It’s one thing to do it yourself, but trying to scale a process into something others can duplicate, that's a lot harder. 

Luckily, the people I’m privileged to have on this team have been amazing and are making this part a lot easier.

What’s the most memorable milestone in your career so far?

It’s so hard to pick just one. 

During my time at Sonos, I was twice recognized as a RockStar, which was essentially employee of the year. 

In 2021, I was the member of the year for HAVAN.  

But the biggest highlight was this year when I was part of a panel discussion on the main stage of the Vancouver Home Show. 

This meant a lot to me because five years earlier, I was not even close to being a part of the construction and design industries and to be standing on the stage there.

What a powerful reminder that all the little things we do daily lead to much bigger things if we keep at them and stay the course. 

What are you learning right now?

That’s a hard one to nail down, but luckily, the universe affords us many opportunities to grow daily. I would say the biggest one is to let go and trust your team to do what they do best. 

Empower them to do great work, invest in their growth, and make them feel like the important people they are. I couldn’t do this without them, and want them to know it.

Do you have any mentors?

I have been so lucky to be surrounded by amazing people who have taught me so much.

When I was a kid working at Home Depot in university, a few of the guys there helped me grow past being a lazy, selfish kid and kicked my backside doing it. Ralph Lamb, Gary St. Denis, and Brad Paterson helped me become who I am today.  

Later, when I was beginning my career in consumer electronics, John Minelli and Arnie Vabson helped me so much and gave me many opportunities to show what I could do.

During my time at Sonos, Kevin McCuaig taught me a ton about business and life and was one of my best teachers and a valued friend.

Over the last five years, my good friends, Tony Scaffeo at the Scaffeo Group and Keith Lloyd at The Business Surgeon, have taken me under their wing.

I would not be here were it not for them. The first three years of this company were hard and a daily test of patience and resolve. They helped me get past those parts, and I will always be grateful.

What’s a recent habit you’ve picked up that’s made a difference in your life?

We have a very busy life at our house. We recently started planning meals and prepping them, which is giving us back a lot of time during the work week. 

Now that time’s spent walking, listening to music, playing with dogs, or anything that improves our lives.

Where do you see yourself in 3, 6, and 9 years?

Three years from now, I expect to be very busy growing this company, expanding to markets like Toronto and New York and still being a full-time dad. I may have missed the first years but I'm 110 per cent loving the last few and excited for the next.

Six years from now, I will pretty much have an empty nest and probably only one dog unless someone can create a startup to help dogs live forever. Things will change in terms of how and where I need to live, so maybe a return to the city and downtown life. I look forward to growing an amazing team and helping them develop in their respective roles as we continue to expand to support more builders, designers, and homeowners.

Nine years from now, I will be almost 60 and would like to spend those years travelling and enjoying the lake in Nova Scotia. It’s hard to think about work then, so I’m just enjoying living in this moment. 

How do you prevent burnout?

First and foremost: vitamin music. When the world seems too much, a good pair of speakers and great records go a long way.  

On a larger scale, I take walks when I can’t figure something out and talk to my mentors to make sure I can maintain the speed I'm moving at. 

I haven’t always been good at this, though, and it's safe to say that I was very burnt out after I left Sonos. 

I don’t ever want to go back to feeling that way again, and while I love what I do, I don’t love it so much that it's worth my life, health, or happiness.

What advice do you have for other entrepreneurs?

Go for it. Don’t go into debt to do so, but go for it. 

If you have something you’re passionate about and think you can solve a problem and do it better than everyone else, go for it.

It doesn’t matter if you have a business background, either. There are people who can help you with that part. 

Innovators need integrators to make their ideas come to life. The hard part is the idea. 

If you have a great idea, work hard, and genuinely want to help people, that’s all you need. The rest can be learned.

Who’s one person or brand everyone should follow on social?

Besides AI Technology & Design, I follow my favourite brands like Sonos, Lutron, Savant, Crestron, and B&W.

They offer great information on what’s new and exciting but also a lot of inspiration on great music suggestions.

What does Vancouver’s tech ecosystem need the most?

More opportunities to connect with each other and share ideas. 

There are two types of people in the world: most people just go about their day-to-day lives, looking inward. Then there are those special few, the ones who value connection and collaboration. Those are the people I personally want to meet.  

What kind of support can you offer the community?

I’m like Captain Kirk. 

I’m on a five-year mission to change an entire industry by supporting a completely different one, so education is a key foundation of this. 

However, to get in front of the right people, you have to network and connect with them. This is an area I gladly coach people on. 

I will always make time for coffee to connect with people, and I’m happy to support anyone who is struggling to do this. It comes naturally to me; if I can help others, I’m all in.

How can people connect with you?

They can find me on LinkedIn or Instagram.