A Mobile Party Central
Michael Dandurand has been in business for 25 years. Coco Zickos photos
Michael Dandurand
Owner, Kaua‘i Kustom Sounds
Please tell us about your business.
Kaua’i Kustom Sounds is a mobile entertainment company that has been in business for 25 years. If you were to come up with an idea and you want to throw a party, you’re going to need entertainment, and we are the guys who come in and really make the show happen. Our equipment is top-of-the-line, and we’re not just guys who press a button and hit play. Our DJs are emcees, so when you hire us, we carry the function from start to finish.
Do your customers select the music?
When customers get to the point that they are interested in booking us, we send them a confirmation in the mail with a form to fill out to give us an idea of what kind of music they want, how they want the program to go and, also, if they need any help putting the program together. Since we’ve been doing this for so long, depending on where it is and what kind of party they want, I can mold the perfect program for them.
They tell us what they want and we customize it to their liking.
What sets your business apart?
There are many things, but the most important part is that we are entertainers. Anybody can order a DJin-a-box. Right now, with our technology, you can download all kinds of music and you can do it yourself on your iPod if you want. That’s not what we do, we’re not button-pushers. Our DJs are emcees, that’s really our focus. Anybody can play music, but our DJs can take the party and make it enjoyable and flow smoothly. We can guarantee that it’s going to be a great party if you hire our company.
How did you get started in this business?
When I was in grade school, I was the guy at the record player putting the records on while people were dancing, and I really enjoyed it. In high school, in 1978, a friend of mine and I did some DJ work, and did a weekend thing at the local gym and called it Boogie Down Productions. When I went to college at the University of Notre Dame, they were looking for a DJ at the local bar, and I sent them a cassette tape of my favorite songs I would play, and they hired me on the spot. After college, I worked at the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Honolulu as a sales manager, and on the side I deejayed. So Kaua’i Kustom Sounds went from one guy with some records to a full-blown eight multisystem company.
Dandurand is a DJ as well as a business owner. Photo courtesy Michael Dandruand
What is the most rewarding aspect of your business?
It’s at the end of the night when you look out there and everybody’s dancing and having a great time. There’s that one moment in their life, and as a DJ you are part of one of the most important days of a person’s or couple’s life. So you’re a part of that and you’re actually facilitating it to make it the most memorable part of their life, and it’s a special thing that you’re doing.
What kind of parties do you usually book?
About 80 percent of our business is weddings, 10 to 15 percent is the local baby party and grad party market, and about 5 percent is conventions.
Do you have a most memorable experience?
There was a wedding I was doing at the Hyatt, and the father of the bride was carrying his grandchild and everybody was eating dinner and no one was paying attention to it. I played this song by Elton John, and he had the baby on the floor by himself and he was singing to his granddaughter, crying. That sticks out in my head that a song can bring out that kind of emotion in somebody.
If you weren’t doing this, what would you be doing?
I envy sometimes the bartenders at Duke’s or the guys who do the zip-line tours or the people at Captain Andy’s. They’re out there working with people having such a great time on vacation and they’re doing fun stuff.
Kaua’i Kustom Sounds 245-7860 mike@kskauai.com
