Everyone knows Christopher Sterle as the founder and CEO of Acoustic Design Systems – the guy who’s spent over two decades turning houses into smart homes and security fortresses.
Before he was running a company with nearly 60 employees and 30+ service vehicles, he was just a kid in Mentor, Ohio, giving his parents a run for their money. We did the only reasonable thing – we sat down with his mom and dad, Marge and Jerry Sterle, and asked them to spill everything. Grab a coffee or a glass of wine, like Marge almost did. This is the origin story you didn’t know you needed.
Q&A: Everything You Wanted to Know About Christopher (Straight from the Source)
Q: What was the first sign Christopher would someday own his own business?
Christopher kept getting fired from jobs. “I knew he wasn’t going to work for somebody else, because they fired him,” Jerry said. “If he was the owner and his own boss, he couldn’t fire himself.”
Q: Did you ever imagine Christopher would grow up to start his own company?
Not exactly in these words, but Marge admitted that early on, she had her doubts about what kind of grown-up Christopher would become – mostly because of his fondness for lighting things on fire as a kid. Jerry, meanwhile, always figured he would end up running the show somewhere. As parents, though, they both agreed the real goal was simpler than predicting a career path – raising a kid who could go further than they did.
Q: Was Christopher always into technology and gadgets?
Yes, and it showed early. He worked at electronics and stereo shops as a teenager, including a store called Sun TV back in Mentor. Marge remembers walking in one day and watching him field a customer’s questions like a pro. “It just floored me,” she said. “That’s our son?”
Q: What would ADS employees be surprised to learn about Christopher?
That his work ethic wasn’t always what it is today. Jerry tells a story about asking a teenage Christopher to mow the lawn — and getting back a lawn that looked like a bad haircut, high in some spots and scalped in others, because he walked so fast the mower blade never had a chance to catch up. These days, of course, that same guy obsesses over getting every detail of a system exactly right – turns out the meticulous streak just needed the right outlet.
Q: In one word, how would you describe Christopher?
Jerry’s answer was immediate: capable. Marge added in “fantastic.” She couldn’t ask for a better son.
Q: What do you want customers, or anyone watching, to know about Christoper and the ADS team?
“You can trust Christopher. You can trust his team,” Jerry said. “He’ll come to you and explain what you need, not what they think you need, and give you the best system, and his crew is always there to back him up.” Marge added that the team truly listens to customers, and even when they disagree with what a client wants, “they’ll tell you in a professional way… and they will show that they really care about you and your needs.”
Q: If Christopher wasn’t running ADS, what would he be doing?
The consensus: golfing, traveling, and according to Marge, “selling Legos.” Given how much time he already spends doing at least two of those three, we’re not convinced retirement will look all that different.
Meanwhile, Marge and Jerry Weigh In on Their Smart Home Tech Back in Ohio
Marge and Jerry aren’t just Christopher’s parents – they’re also ADS customers, in a way. Years ago, Christopher flew back to Mentor with a trunk full of parts and installed a surround sound system in their family room, giving his parents an ongoing relationship with the kind of tech their son sells for a living.
Q: What does “smart home technology” mean to you?
Jerry keeps it simple: “You don’t have to do anything but push a button to make everything work.” Lights, security, music, doorbells, shades, all controlled from a phone or a wall-mounted pad.
Q: What’s your favorite feature at Christopher’s house?
Without hesitation, Marge says the automatic shades. “Everything goes up and down at once,” she said with a not-so-subtle hint she’d love the same at home.
Q: How’s the surround sound system holding up in Ohio?
Still going strong. Jerry loves cranking the volume during action movies – once so loud that Marge stood right next to him yelling and he genuinely didn’t hear her.
Q: What would you add to your own home if you could?
Marge wants lighting scenes – one button for a whole room’s mood. Jerry wants security cameras and the same electric shades Marge is after.
The Bigger Picture
Underneath the jokes, Marge and Jerry’s answers point to something that’s actually core to how ADS operates: a genuine belief that the customer relationship doesn’t end at installation. As Christopher put it during the sit-down, most contractors such as flooring, HVAC, roofing finish the job and you never see them again. ADS is built to be different – a long-term partner who keeps your systems updated, your security current, and your smart home actually smart for years to come.
Turns out the same kid who couldn’t slow down mowing a lawn grew into the guy who insists on doing everything else the slow, careful, get-it-right way. Marge and Jerry might be a little biased, but so are we.
Want more behind-the-scenes stories from the ADS family? Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube, and keep an eye on our blog – we’ve got a feeling Marge and Jerry aren’t done talking
