Many reasons lay behind starting a small business – passion, money, scheduling and freedom are only a few. No matter one’s experience in their chosen field, or their reasons behind starting their business, they all have a story.

Nick Wood, 41, came to New York City from Stamford, Connecticut to pursue his passion of music. He studied music production at the Institute of Audio Research in the late 90s. Wood quickly found that music production wasn’t the most lucrative career, so he landed a job with a company that did music equipment rental instead. The company had a rehearsal studio, which Wood eventually became the manager of.

“I started managing that studio and figured I could do a much better job than that company, so I decided to start my own.”

Wood took his experience and started his own audio equipment rental business, now called Perpetual Audio Systems, Inc.. It started with him and a handful of other like-minded people, but now he is the sole owner operating with three employees. The company provides “audio, visual, and technical services, as well as equipment for events that have live music or performances.”

The feeling of being able to run a company better than the one you work for is just one source of motivation for creating a business. Paired with his knowledge and passion for music production, his source of motivation was exactly enough to get his small business off the ground. He has set up shows for names such as Kanye West, Animal Collective, Matt and Kim, and still works with The Museum of Natural History at their monthly One Step Beyond party.