Marshall
Stockholm, Stockholm County, Sweden · founded 2008
Not independent. The Marshall consumer-audio business is the former Zound Industries (founded 2008 in Sweden; co-founder Konrad Bergström), which built the Marshall headphone/speaker line under a 2010 brand license from Marshall Amplification. Zound acquired Marshall Amplification in 2023 and renamed itself Marshall Group (HQ Stockholm). In January 2025, Chinese private-equity/VC firm HongShan Capital Group (HSG, formerly Sequoia China) agreed to acquire a majority stake in Marshall Group in a deal valuing the company at ~EUR 1.1 billion; the Marshall family retains a stake of over 20%. Must be distinguished from Marshall Amplification, the guitar-amp maker (Milton Keynes, UK; founded 1962 by Jim Marshall), which is now a subsidiary/division of the same Marshall Group parent.
Marshall consumer audio (headphones, earbuds, and Bluetooth speakers) is the Marshall-branded personal-audio line designed and manufactured under license by the Swedish company originally known as Zound Industries, now the Marshall Group. Zound began producing Marshall-branded headphones and speakers under a 2010 licensing deal with UK guitar-amp maker Marshall Amplification. In 2023 Zound acquired Marshall Amplification outright and renamed itself Marshall Group, bringing the amps and consumer-audio businesses under one company. The headphones carry Marshall’s rock heritage design language (script logo, gold accents, textured “guitar-vinyl” finishes) and target a style-conscious mainstream consumer rather than the audiophile market. NOTE: This entry is Marshall consumer headphones/speakers (Zound/Marshall Group), which is distinct from Marshall Amplification, the guitar-amplifier manufacturer in Milton Keynes, UK founded by Jim Marshall in 1962 — though since 2023 both sit inside the same parent, Marshall Group.
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At a glance
- Type
- Manufacturer
- Founder
- Konrad Bergström (and co-founders) — as Zound Industries
- Founded
- 2008
- Headquarters
- Stockholm, Stockholm County, Sweden
- Price range
- Mid-fi
- Makes / sells
- headphones, earbuds, wireless-speakers, bluetooth-speakers
- Known for
- Bluetooth on-ear and over-ear headphones, true wireless earbuds with ANC, portable and home Bluetooth speakers, rock-heritage industrial design and branding, long battery life
- Website
- www.marshall.com
Notable products
- Marshall Major IV — Best-selling on-ear Bluetooth headphone with ~80+ hours battery life; a defining volume seller for the brand
- Marshall Major V — Successor to the Major IV, rated up to ~100 hours playback with wireless charging
- Marshall Monitor III A.N.C. — Over-ear active-noise-cancelling flagship headphone; uses recycled plastics
- Marshall Motif II A.N.C. — True wireless ANC earbuds, positioned as the premium TWS in the lineup
- Marshall Middleton — Portable Bluetooth speaker launched 2023
Sources: audioXpress — Zound Industries Now Fully Transformed into Marshall Group · Forbes — Zound Industries Acquires Marshall Amplification To Create New Group With $360m Revenues · Music Business Worldwide — Marshall acquired by China's HongShan in $1bn+ deal · Marshall Group — Marshall to turn up the volume with HSG as new majority shareholder · Crunchbase — Zound Industries company profile · MusicRadar — Marshall sold to Swedish speaker company Zound · Marshall.com — Headphones