Hearing aid manufacturer Eargo is now selling its hearing aids in 1,500 Victra Wireless stores.
The news comes after the FDA approved the sale of certain hearing aids over the counter (OTC), allowing sales in stores like Walmart, Best Buy, CVS, and, now, wireless carrier stores.
A carrier may seem like an unlikely partner, but Eargo CEO Christian Gormsen says the benefit comes from the customer service support, as shoppers may be buying a hearing aid for the first time without an audiologist's support. Victra is a Verizon Authorized Retailer, meaning it can sell Verizon services, and customers can tap into Verizon customer service if there's a problem. Find a Victra location here or on Eargo's website.
"Consumers can actually engage with a trained sales consultants because you have trained people there without the crazy traffic you see in a Costco or Walmart," Gormsen says. "You're in a place where you can actually get service, [which is] why you go into the stores to begin with."
The new regulations took effect on Oct. 17, though they've been in the works since 2017. They create an FDA-approved category of hearing aids for mild to moderate hearing loss and allow them to be sold in stores without requiring an audiologist prescription.
Eargo and other manufacturers have been legally permitted to sell through direct-to-consumer websites since around 2017 as well. But formalizing an OTC category that encompasses online and brick-and-mortar sales is expected to reduce prices for the average hearing aid. Audiologist-prescribed devices can cost up to $8,000. OTC devices cut out audiologist fees, lowering the price to $2,000 and below (Walmart offers a pair now for $199).
While hearing aids are now cheaper, they are still more than most people typically spend on a routine visit to CVS. Eargo's hearing aids cost between $1,500 and $3,000, putting their price point closer to a cell phone or laptop than a pack of gum at the drugstore. Eargo products are also available Best Buy, Amazon, and others.
Many retailers started offering hearing aids last month, CNBC reports, though wireless stores stand out from the other big box retailers. It remains to be seen how many types of retailers will carry hearing aids as the OTC ruling settles in.
"They could be available at your local gas station," says John R. Luna, CEO of Nuheara, which created a new OTC hearing aid with HP that starts at $699.
"This is now available everywhere consumer products are sold over the counter," Luna adds. "Any retailer anywhere in the US can sell them on their own. Chiropractors, dentists, vision centers, you name it. If they see the patient need, they can start offering [hearing aids], and now they're more available to those that need it."
Luna and Gormsen agree that education and support are key to customers finding the right hearing aid for them in this new environment. Hearing aid return rates are already around 30% or as high as 50% given how tricky they are to fit and the fact that people who were formerly shopping online could not see them in person.
That changes with the OTC ruling bringing hearing aids into stores, especially at places with dedicated service teams.
"The best advice I would give anyone is to do your research," says Gormsen. "Talk to different people, figure out who you trust. Just because the price is attractive, [ask] who is there to help you if it doesn't work. That's important."