Linstol at 25
This year sees amenities and headsets supplier, Linstol, mark its 25th anniversary. Julie Baxter
looks back with founder Peter Woolhouse and ahead with the team
When Peter Woolhouse took early retirement aged 57, he realised almost at once he wasn’t quite ready for slippers and a rocking chair. He took on consulting roles with his former employer Hunting Avionics and simultaneously started Linstol, but little did he know he’d still be getting a buzz from the business 25 years on, as he turns 83.
Woolhouse founded Linstol with his wife Peggy and developed it with the help of his son-in-law Ole Bek and more recently with current cfo Kevin Peat and ceo Mark Russell. Today the company has 35 employees and offices in the UK, the US, Hong Kong and Shanghai. It has broadened its reach beyond avionics to include amenity kits, comfort products and disposables alongside the headsets and prides itself on offering creative, customised solutions for airlines, as well as inventory management and forecasting.
Woolhouse says: “The biggest change has been in the importance of design. Technology is not just about good sound or noise cancelling now, there is so much more from the finishing and features to the style. Airlines have recognised that good quality inflight entertainment attracts passengers to their brand, it’s an integral part of the experience, and it is unquestionably still evolving. ”
To mark its anniversary Linstol launched a new headset in collaboration with high-end audio brand Meridian, and to reflect its broader portfolio also unveiled new additions in its rotable and amenity collections.
The new Super Cup allows crews to store 25 double-walled cups in a 14 inch stack compared with the standard 15 per stack and comes with strong eco credentials. Its earth coating can be pulped or recycled rather than joining the 98% of paper cups which go to landfill because of PE linings. Russell says: “We have been working on this for 18 months. Earth coating exists in retail settings but not in airlines and the fact that this is an innovation which is cost neutral or even cost saving makes it a game changer.”
Linstol has made significant commitments to doing the right thing within business whether on the environmental or charitable level. It has a number of ongoing community projects including a partnership with the headset brand, LSTN, founded specifically to change lives. A portion of the proceeds from all LSTN products go towards hearing aids via a charity partner.
Its latest brand alignment reflects this commitment for doing the right thing - a new partnership unveiled with Skin Regimen. A lifestyle brand with a focus on wellness and relaxation, the range comes with scientific credentials which suggest its natural formulas actively address chemical changes in the body triggered by stress and environmental pollution.
Russell adds: “Increasingly airlines want to see transparent and thoughtful brand philosophy and this has been at the heart of our activities for many years."
Airlines want to see transparent and thoughtful brands