Meet Your Hearing Care Specialist
Gwen Cantrell, BC-HIS
A Mother’s Promise Became a Life’s Mission
Some people choose a career. Others have a career choose them.
For Gwen Cantrell, BC-HIS, hearing healthcare was never part of the plan.
She wasn’t searching for a new profession. She wasn’t dreaming of opening a hearing aid practice. She was a special education teacher, an advocate for children, and a dedicated mother raising a large family.
Then everything changed.
One little girl.
One unexpected diagnosis.
One promise.
Gwen has worked in hearing healthcare since 2012. Today, she is a Nationally Board Certified Hearing Instrument Specialist (BC-HIS), a Certified Dementia Practitioner, a two-time Governor-appointed member of Georgia’s licensing board for hearing healthcare professionals, and the founder of Hearing Aid Factory Outlet, a leading independent, family-owned hearing healthcare provider in Georgia.
But none of those accomplishments define her.
Ask Gwen why she does what she does, and she’ll tell you about her daughter.
Because every patient who walks through her doors reminds her why this journey began.
A Mother Searching for Answers
When Gwen’s daughter, Trinity, was about eighteen months old, she noticed something wasn’t right.
If she spoke while standing behind her, Trinity wouldn’t turn around.
Like every mother, Gwen trusted her instincts.
What followed was months of unanswered questions.
Doctors weren’t sure if Trinity’s hearing loss was conductive or sensorineural. She battled repeated ear infections, underwent surgery to remove her tonsils and adenoids, and saw specialist after specialist before doctors finally discovered a yeast-related infection that complicated her treatment.
It was a difficult season filled with uncertainty.
But the medical diagnosis wasn’t the hardest part.
Living with the system was.
When the System Failed
As Trinity grew, hearing aids became essential.
Unfortunately, getting help often meant waiting. Insurance determined which providers they could visit. Appointments could take weeks. Repairs could take weeks longer. If hearing aids broke, there were no loaners. Families simply waited.
For a child depending on hearing aids every waking hour, waiting wasn’t an inconvenience. It meant missing conversations. Missing school. Missing life.
“There has to be a better way.”
The Night Everything Changed
One morning, the family’s Chihuahua chewed up Trinity’s hearing aids. Without them, Trinity couldn’t hear.
Gwen immediately called the hearing provider expecting someone would help. Instead, she was told replacements would take weeks. There were no loaner hearing aids. No temporary solution. Nothing.
That answer changed everything.
Rather than accept it, Gwen and her husband searched online for replacement hearing aids, purchased programming equipment, and began teaching themselves how hearing aids worked.
That night, Gwen made a promise.
My daughter will never be without hearing again.
Then another thought entered her mind:
“How many other families are going through exactly what we’re going through?”
That question would eventually become Hearing Aid Factory Outlet.
Never Stop Looking for Answers
As Trinity grew older, several professionals recommended a cochlear implant. Gwen wasn’t against technology. She simply believed they hadn’t explored every possibility.
She continued researching. Learning. Asking questions. Trying new solutions.
Eventually, she found hearing technology that dramatically improved Trinity’s ability to hear and communicate. Today, Trinity’s speech and communication abilities exceed what many people expected for someone with her hearing loss.
That experience permanently shaped Gwen’s philosophy.
Never stop looking for answers.
Never stop learning.
Never stop fighting for your patient.
Around the office, that philosophy became known simply as — Never Say Never.
From the Classroom to the Clinic
Gwen realized something: the kind of hearing professional she wished her family had didn’t exist. So she decided to become that professional herself.
Leaving a successful career in education wasn’t easy. Neither was raising eight children while studying for a new profession. Finding a sponsor to enter the hearing industry proved difficult because there were few licensed specialists willing to mentor newcomers.
Still, quitting was never an option. Her husband stepped in, taking care of dinners, bedtime routines, and whatever else the family needed while Gwen studied late into the night.
Eventually she earned her Georgia license. But she wasn’t finished. Determined to provide the highest level of care possible, she earned National Board Certification in Hearing Instrument Sciences (BC-HIS) — one of the profession’s highest credentials.
National Provider Identifier (NPI): 1841954492Verify Gwen’s Georgia license with the Secretary of State →
Built Around One Question
Getting licensed wasn’t the end of Gwen’s journey. It was the beginning.
When she founded Hearing Aid Factory Outlet, every decision was guided by one simple question:
“What would I have wanted for Trinity?”
The answers became the foundation of the practice.
If hearing aids needed repairs, patients shouldn’t spend weeks unable to hear — so Hearing Aid Factory Outlet provides loaner hearing aids whenever possible, allowing patients to continue hearing while their devices are being repaired.
If someone worked during the week or needed weekend appointments, they shouldn’t have to wait — so the practice offers appointments seven days a week.
If someone couldn’t travel, they still deserved exceptional hearing care — so Gwen created a mobile hearing healthcare program, providing professional services in homes, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, assisted living communities, memory care facilities, skilled nursing facilities, and other senior care settings.
Because great hearing care shouldn’t stop at the office door.
The Empty Store Where It Became Real
Hearing Aid Factory Outlet began as Gwen’s goal to build the kind of hearing-aid store she had once needed for Trinity: independent, accessible, practical and prepared to help when a family could not afford to wait weeks for answers.
Standing inside the unfinished space made that goal real. The rooms were still empty. The equipment and displays had not arrived. But Gwen finally had a place where she could build the practice around the promises she had already made.
The promise had become a place.
From there, every part of the store was shaped around patient access, professional care, faster help and the belief that people should never feel abandoned when their hearing aids stop working.
Bringing Hearing Care to the People
One of Gwen’s most unique decisions was choosing to locate Hearing Aid Factory Outlet inside convenient shopping centers. While many hearing practices are tucked away inside medical buildings, Gwen wanted patients to receive hearing care where they already lived their lives.
Patients can stop by while shopping, running errands, or enjoying lunch with family. Free parking. Easy access. Convenient locations. A welcoming environment.
For many patients, especially older adults and caregivers, convenience makes the difference between delaying treatment and finally getting help. Gwen believes hearing care should fit into people’s lives — not require people to fit into the provider’s schedule.
Technology, Accuracy, Training
From the beginning, Gwen invested in professional-grade diagnostic equipment, full-size sound-treated hearing booths, advanced verification technology, and modern fitting systems to ensure every patient receives the most accurate evaluation possible.
She also built direct relationships with many of the world’s leading hearing aid manufacturers. Those partnerships allow Hearing Aid Factory Outlet to offer the newest hearing technology, exceptional selection, and highly competitive pricing by purchasing directly from manufacturers whenever possible.
Instead of being limited to one brand, patients receive recommendations based on what is best for their hearing, lifestyle, and budget.
Just as important, Gwen has built a team that shares her philosophy. Her staff receives ongoing training and is committed to treating every patient with patience, kindness, respect, and compassion.
Because technology alone doesn’t change lives. People do.
Curious what hearing aid Gwen wears?
Gwen wears Starkey Omega AI every day, herself, so when she recommends it to a patient, it comes from real experience, not a spec sheet.
Serving the State of Georgia
A Voice in How the Field Is Regulated
Gwen Cantrell, BC-HIS, taking the oath of office for her appointment to Georgia’s professional licensing board.
Gwen’s leadership extends far beyond her practice. In 2022, Governor Brian Kemp appointed her to the State Board of Hearing Aid Dealers and Dispensers, where she helped protect consumers and uphold professional standards. The Governor’s Office appointment announcement identifies Gwen and Hearing Aid Factory Outlet.
When Georgia reorganized its licensing boards, Governor Kemp appointed Gwen again in 2026 to the State Board of Examiners for Speech-Language Pathology, Audiology, and Hearing Aid Dispensing. View the signed 2026 executive order.
Official appointment records: 2022 Governor’s Office announcement · 2022 signed executive order · 2026 signed executive order
Protect patients. Raise professional standards. Promote education. Preserve patient choice.
Caring for the Whole Person
As research increasingly connected untreated hearing loss with cognitive decline, Gwen wanted to better serve patients facing memory challenges. She earned the Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP) credential through the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners (NCCDP).
Her practical approach is explained in our caregiver guide to hearing aids for seniors with memory loss or dementia, including device choice, caregiver routines and situations where a simpler plan may be better.
Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP)
A visible commitment to continuing education and dementia-aware hearing care.
Credential holder: Gwendolyn Cantrell, CDP
Certification number: 281669
Current certification period: December 11, 2025 through December 11, 2027
Through the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners, Gwen completed focused professional education in Alzheimer’s disease and dementia care. Earning and maintaining the CDP credential reflects her decision to go beyond baseline hearing-care requirements and continue strengthening the communication, patience, safety awareness and person-centered approach needed when serving people living with dementia, their families and caregivers.
The credential also reflects an ongoing commitment to continuing education. For Gwen, that means continuing to learn how memory changes can affect communication, appointment pacing, understanding instructions and the role of family or caregivers in successful hearing care.
Learn more about the Certified Dementia Practitioner credential from NCCDP →
Today, appointments are designed with those patients in mind — additional appointment time, family participation, written instructions, simplified education, and home visits when appropriate.
Her goal isn’t simply helping people hear better. It’s helping them remain connected to family, friends, and everyday life.
Meeting Patients Where They Are
Over the years, Gwen has adjusted hearing aids in workplaces so patients could continue their careers. She has traveled to homes when patients could no longer drive. She has visited hospitals and rehabilitation centers. She has even cared for patients in hospice, making sure they could hear the voices of their loved ones during life’s most meaningful moments.
Those moments remind her why Hearing Aid Factory Outlet exists.
Not to sell hearing aids.
To help people stay connected to the people they love.
“You gave me half my life back.”
One patient came to Gwen after being told repeatedly that nothing could be done for his right ear. Provider after provider had given up. Gwen didn’t. After careful testing and fitting the appropriate technology, she asked him to listen. Tears filled his eyes. For the first time in years, he was hearing from the ear everyone else had written off.
That is why Gwen continues to believe — Never Say Never.
Carrying the Promise Forward
Today, Hearing Aid Factory Outlet is more than a successful hearing practice. It has become a family mission.
Multiple members of the Cantrell family have followed Gwen into hearing healthcare, helping thousands of patients throughout Georgia. Together they continue fulfilling the promise that started everything.
Treat every patient like family.
Never stop searching for answers.
Never let someone face hearing loss alone.
Credentials You Can Verify
July 9, 2026
BC-HIS
Nationally Board Certified Hearing Instrument Specialist
Certified Dementia Practitioner
Specialized training in memory-focused patient care
Two-Time Governor Appointee
Georgia’s licensing board for hearing healthcare professionals
Founder
Hearing Aid Factory Outlet, a leading independent, family-owned provider in Georgia
A Promise That Continues Today
When you choose Gwen Cantrell and Hearing Aid Factory Outlet, you’re choosing more than decades of experience, advanced credentials, and leading technology.
You’re choosing a provider whose philosophy was shaped not in a classroom, but at a kitchen table, beside a little girl who simply wanted to hear.
Every innovation. Every convenience. Every investment. Every decision.
Can be traced back to one mother’s promise.
Helping people hear has never just been a profession. It’s a promise kept.