In
the first of our new series of creator interviews, we chat to the man
behind SitPack, the compact travel seating solution from Denmark that
we reviewed right here.
1.
Hello.
Who are you?
I’m
Jonas Lind-Bendixen, thanks for asking
2.
And what do you do?
I
invented, and now I sell, compact travel seats, AKA Sitpack. In
essence Sitpack is a tool to make portable seating more convenient
and functional for everyone. The seat is actually no bigger that a
50Cl. beer can when folded up - and is like a 87 cm high bar stool
when unfolded.
3:
Tell us how you got started with that
The
idea came to me at Roskilde Festival 2010, waiting for Prince to go
on stage. Waiting for three hours standing, you get inventive in
terms of finding a place to sit/relax a bit. The ground was super
grimy, so sitting on the ground was not an option, and not being the
type of guy to carry camping chairs around, standing was the only
solution. Going through a decent amount of 50Cl beers while waiting -
the idea came from heaven above. Boom. Put a camping chair in to a 50
Cl. Beer can; a perfect solution for carrying around to get a quick
rest here and there.
I
then started writing a business plan, making pitch decks for raising
money, and finding likeminded people to start developing this new
invention. Eventually we went on Kickstarter and raised $170K on a
campaign that only cost hard work. This eventually led to industry
funding and means to get our Danish production facilities up and
running.
4:
Nice. So what is an average day like for you?
I
get up around 7am, check my email, eat breakfast with my daughter
(some times my GF – who’s a nurse and gets up crazy early, to
help people - respect), argue with my daughter about her clothes, hug
it out, and deliver her to day care.
I
jump on my bicycle, and arrive at Sitpack HQ. Greet my colleagues,
get my coffee, answer emails, do sales calls, follow–ups, have
meetings about everything and nothing. Have a few laughs, try to deal
with unsatisfied customers that haven’t read the user guide (wink
wink). Write emails, drink more coffee, go home to my family in the
afternoon and enjoy the evening. I then do a 15-30 min workout
routine, and some sofa work from around 10pm till midnight for
anything trans-Atlantic, and preparing emails for Asia when they
wake-up.
5:
Where do you see your industry going in the near future, and how
might you have to adapt?
Sure,
ever since we launched of our KS Campaign, back in 2014, we’ve seen
that people are accepting the one-legged chill position. Even Chinese
fakes are popping up, which we see as a good sign, as long as we can
keep them at bay, which we are doing at the moment.
In
general, we’ve experienced an increase in sales and interest from
all countries in the world, so my guess is that we’ll see more
companies making one-legged portable seating and that these will soon
become a standard product in most gadget, travel, design and outdoor
shops.
6:
What advice would you offer to someone keen to follow in your
footsteps?
Pitch
your idea endlessly to everyone; get honest feedback from people with
no filter, preferentially tipsy people at a bar/party. If you are on
to something, find partners, advisors that understand you and can
connect to the right people. Go with your gut, but always remember a
wise man once said; it takes five to seven years to create an
overnight success.
If
you don’t have the million dollar idea, but aspire for
entrepreneurship and creating your own disruptive start-up, I would
recommend to work for a start-up to for little or no money for a
period to learn and understand the ups and downs that are involved
with creating you own business.
I
would then utilise that experience get a job working at a scaling
start-up or a medium sized company that pays a salary. At this type
of company, you would be able to build up international and
organisational experience, which are key for success. When you feel
you have completed your learning, expanded your network, and have a
little cash in: I believe this would make creating a start-up a lot
smoother.
7:
Thanks for that. So, apart from your own products, what kind of
gadget would you like to see being reviewed on The Test Pit.
Oh,
man nothing in particular – you got me covered pretty good. But it
would be cool to have a “straight out of Japan section”. In Japan
you’ll find some crazy and amazing inventions that never see the
EU/US market!
Cheers
Jonas, and all the best with SitPack!
