Last week we closed our second seed investment here at Lokku. I'm very pleased to announce Lokku are now shareholders in SplashMaps.
For those who don't yet know SplashMaps, they make fabric maps. The concept is basically the same as the old escape and evasion maps used by the military. But SplashMaps are a modern and much improved twist on a forgotten classic. These maps are made for the real outdoors, a very high-quality synthetic fabric that makes them highly durable and waterproof. You can draw on them with a water-soluble marker to plot your route. You can carry and store the map anyway you want to, wear it as a scarf, fold it up neatly or simply ball it up and stuff it in a pocket. Then at the end of the trip, you just throw it into the washing machine and you're ready to head out again. Best of all though, you can customise the map to be exactly the map you need.
So, why did we invest? First and foremost, the team has put together a great product. Last week Gary and I had the chance to work the stand with the SplashMaps team at The Telegraph Outdoor Show. This is the UK's largest outdoor industry event and it was plain that this is a product that people like from the instant they see (or indeed touch) it. This is something you want to own. Anyone who has ever ridden a mountain bike down a muddy ridge in the rain, or stood on top of a windy crest will immediately understand the benefits.
But beyond the great product itself there are lots of underlying themes around this business that we love.
Perseverance. The founders of SplashMaps have taken the concept from idea to one of the UK's first successfully funded Kickstarter projects (we first came across SplashMaps when David Overton, the CEO, spoke at the November 2012 #geomob to drum up support for the Kickstarter project) through to production and then to distribution with major retailers; they are now rapidly innovating on the product and taking it worldwide. As founders ourselves we know that the key asset an entrepreneur needs is stubbornness, and this team has it.
Physical in the age of digital. One question that occasionally comes up is "why do I need a physical map when surely in the modern age there are ever better devices that can show me my route?" It is true there has been a lot of innovation on the device front, but there is something emotionally powerful about a tangible map, not just as a tool for route finding but as a souvenir but also as a shared artefact to gather around, as a gift. SplashMaps tap into this need. On the functionality side devices need power, break, require you to take off your glove to use, can't get wet, are expensive, need a network connection and so on. SplashMaps are the modern version of a mapping technology that has survived the ages, and perhaps as a result resonate deeply with the soul of the adventurer. Here at Lokku we are big believers in a future that mashes up the online and offline worlds. In the future the digital is the physical.
Mass customisation. Go to the SplashMaps website and you can order predefined maps of all the major outdoor areas of Great Britain, places like Snowdonia, the Lake District, the South Downs, the Yorkshire Dales and many others; you can see the full selection here. But the real power of the platform is that you can make a SplashMap of any area of Great Britain you like (and soon the world!). You can center the map exactly on your house if you like. Companies like Moo have shown that pairing mass customisation with the unlimited distribution of the internet can be a combination that brings delight to millions - and build a great business.
Global potential - right now SplashMaps are only available for Great Britain, but we got a first look at a beautiful prototype for another market made purely with OpenStreetMap data. We love OSM data so much we run our own business purely focused on that topic. We're look forward to helping SplashMaps serve customers worldwide by building on our experience taking our brand Nestoria to many markets with a very small team.
Multiple channels - SplashMaps are great for individuals, but they're even better for organisations. Are you planning a race and looking for a giveaway people will value much more than yet another t-shirt? Why not a custom SplashMap with the route? Own a bed-and-breakfast that caters to ramblers? Why not sell visitors a custom SplashMap centered on your location and with your logo so they have treasured souvenir and a conversation starter when they head back home? Own a bike shop? Why not give customers a custom map with all the local routes highlighted when they buy an expensive bike? The possibilities are almost endless. Please get in touch with the SplashMaps team if any of that sounds relevant for you.
Open data - Finally, SplashMaps are the physical embodiment of the types of innovation that are possible when information is opened up. By mashing up Ordnance Survey's open data and OpenStreetMap, combining it with cutting-edge printing, wrapping the whole thing in a great brand and with a great marketing message, SplashMaps is on the path to creating a great business. As the founder of a business that is a member of the Open Data Institute, I hope we see many more such successes. Indeed, if you're building an open data business and are looking for seed funding, please get in touch.
Hopefully this post has convinced you that SplashMaps are great. Please have a look at their site and send them any feedback you might have. The best way to track their progress is to follow @splashmaps on twitter.
As I learned though at last week's Outdoor Show, this is definitely a case where feeling is believing. Feel free to pop by the Lokku office where we have a few to show off.
This investment follows on from our recent investment in Inkling (full details). We've talked a bit about what kinds of companies we're seeking to invest in (hint: geo, aggregation, open data, international), and we'll go into it much more in a detailed post in the near future. If you are an entrepreneur in one or more of those spaces and looking for seed funding, please get in touch.
I'll close with a few photos. Here's a picture of Javier and I testing a SplashMap in the field a few weeks ago on the Lokku team outing.
Here Gary and I model SplashMaps as scarves.
