Steve Anavi - Smokio presentation Manufacturing meetup April 22, 2015

by Steve Anavi

April 22, 2015

From idea to product in 100 days

Company Overview

ProductThe first smart wireless eCig

3 © SMOKIO - Do not reproduce without permission 2015.04.22 - Hardware Club X Smokio

CompatibleCharges off any USB port in

under 90min. Compatible with all eGo tanks.

eVod2 by KangerTechPyrex tank, 1.5Ω

impedance providing intense vapor.

Bluetooth SmartPatent filed. Leading power

conservation. Internal Memory. Made in France.

Lasting powerLithium-ion polymer,

ensuring hours of use.

Clean DesignMilled from a single piece of steel. Double coating. © S

MOKIO

4

ProductClean and simple

© SMOKIO - Do not reproduce without permission 2015.04.22 - Hardware Club X Smokio

From €59.90

© SMOKIO

5

Mobile App


© SMOKIO

FoundersBusiness knowledge & execution


Steve Anavi - Product, OpsCOO EMEA/APAC @Groupon, Deloitte Consulting, MSc Engineering EPFL, Tokyo Univ., MBA INSEAD

Alexandre Prot - Sales, FinanceCEO Founder @Wimdu France, McKinsey & Cie, Goldman Sachs, HEC Paris, MBA INSEAD

Emrah Yuceer - China8 years in China doing consumer electronics sourcing and manufacturing

© SMOKIO

Business TimelineKey milestones


Aug-13 Jan-14 Today6 months 12 months Next 18-24 months

R&D Launch Grow

• Build prototype Smokio v1.0• Build online website (eShop) and put in

place logistics (1 distribution center in France)

• Test and select manufacturers (PCB in France, eCig assembly and packaging in Shenzhen)

• Prepare patent filling / Trademarks• Launch first batch of production• Set up customer service plateform. Open

pre-order on smokio.com

• Release iOS and Android app in 5 languages • Ship first users (pre-orders on website). Gather feedback

to start working on improving the app • Launch France with a partnership with Fnac (top French

consumer electronics retailer) • Launch sale on Amazon (UK, FR, DE) and through

partnership with J Well (leading eCig retailer in France with 200+ stores)

• Prototype Smokio v1.5 (an improved version of the Smokio eCig currently selling with power boost, temperature control and micro-USB). Present product at CES 2015

• Launch Admin to monitor users activity in real time • Set-up distribution center in North America

• Strengthen Smokio pipeline and innovation • Smokio v2.0• Open APIs • App v3.0

• Grow volumes • Build online presence in key countries

(especially US, UK, FR, JP, KO) • Build brick-and-mortar key distribution

partnerships in key countries (especially US, UK, FR, JP, KO)

• Keep building brand awareness

<$50k Founding team

Seed RoundVC + BAs© S

MOKIO

http://smokio.com

First 100 Days

First 100 DaysTo do list


IdeaJul-13 Aug-13 Sept-13 Oct-13

Har

dwar

e

Softw

are

Bus

ines

sRetailProto

• Domain name • Logo and brand identity • Google Apps, Trello, Asana • 10s product pitch + vision • Incorporation / Bank

• Features • Detailed requirements • RFP (google / linkedin / friends) • Validation of feasibility • 3D Renders

• Mock-ups / UX • RFP (linkedin / meetup / friends) • Architecture • iTunes / Google Play / Facebook

API / Twitter API setup

• Manufacturer RFP (in China) • Packaging RFP • Prod. requirements • Prototype electronics • Component sourcing

• Launch iOS dev (focus on key features)

• Key animation in JS • Graphic design

• Mock-up website • Editorial (text + photo) • Video • List of potential distributors • Logistics RFP

• Proto vBeta • Firmware vAlpha • Packaging vAlpha • Accessories sourcing • Test, test, test

• Setup website + eCommerce • First meetings with distributors • Get feedback from distributors • Coffee chat with VCs • Trademarks / Patents (?)

• Adjust features • Adjust UX / UI • Setup receiver (back-end) • Test, test, test© S

MOKIO

First 100 DaysTones of stuffs to handle


Website / eShop

Mailing

Customer support

Logistics

Graphic design

Brand identity

Editorial (texte + photo)

Electronics

Firmware

App iOS

App Android

Back-end

Wholesalers

Retailers

Advertising

UX

Testing

HR

Mechanical engineer

Components sourcing

Manufacturing / QC

Assembly

Packaging

API/Webservices

Accessories sourcing

Freight

Battery

PR

Marketing

SEM

IPPricing

3D Renders

Regulation

Legal stuffs

…© SMOKIO

How to…?

How to…Be organized

12

Use free or very cheap tools to get organised and communicate quickly, from Day 1;

Spend almost no time setting up tools with fast team adoption and guaranteed long-term efficiency;

Strengthen company culture;

Use best practices from the best startups that you’ll get inspiration from for your own product;

Have clean and organized folders (there are so many different topics that the last thing you want is to spend 1h /day finding what you are looking for!);

To-Do list AM + PM.


© SMOKIO

How to…Build a website

13

Hardware startups does not usually put enough energy and involvement into building their website although it’s a key business card for customers / partners / investors;

It takes almost no time to put a website together using Wordpress, Squarespace or Webflow. It does not require technical skills, costs pretty much nothing and already works with existing tools including mailing (mailchimp) or payment (stripe), and even sometimes include free domain name registration;

Do not reinvent the wheel / It’s “free” to benchmark others’ website: copy what you find relevant for your own startup - there is nothing to be ashamed of!

Key success factors include: clarity and organisation, text editorial, beautiful full bleed pictures, clean pack-shots… not too many animations.


© SMOKIO

How to…Choose BLE

14

BLE is very easy to implement and with a wide range of chips, available with price ranging from $1 to $4 (Nordic, Broadcom, Cypress, TI, ST). The stack and the logic of command works almost the same from one chip to another. Just buy the top 5 BLE CE out there and break them down!

Some chips are in fact modules. The last Broadcom costs ~$4 but includes antenna, induction charging, FCC/BLE certifications, baloon, etc. Chips often come in various size (QFN vs. CSP). That’s something you may want to consider!

In addition to the size of the community, pay attention to the quality of customer support and help you can get from the manufacturer and/or the wholesaler (e.g. EBV);

When doing an MVP, focus on the main requirements and be organized in versioning the firmware iterations;

The one feature you may want to have in the firmware from Day 1 is Over-the-air upgrade (“OTA”).


© SMOKIO

How to…Do 3D renders / photos

15

Beautiful 3D renders (hardware + packaging) make a huge difference for website or presentation at least until you get your final prototype;

Renders cost from $100 to $10k depending on quality and level of detail;

Use cinema grade rendering tools in addition to technical CAO softwares to get the best outcome;

Lifestyle pictures are one of the most important thing on your website. Invest to get the best quality. Depending on the degree of urgency, it will cost you between $2k to $5k for 50 beautiful pictures;

3D renders and photographers are usually not in charge of the art direction although they might help you with the brainstorming. In any case, be super detailed on the instructions you need and deliverables;

If you don’t want to spend much money of 3D renders and/or lifestyle pictures, use oDesk or Freelancer or even Instagram to find/hire talents.


© SMOKIO

How to…Build an app

16

• BLE works great on both iOS (7+) and Android (4.3+). Pick the one you like the most!

• The very first step is about doing mock-ups and validating the UX. You don’t need a graphic designer for that;

• Find inspirations from others’ app; there are so many websites showcasing apps’ views… use them!

• For MVP, focus on 2 key features and 1-2 nice-to-have (the BLE connection must be P.E.R.F.E.C.T.);

• UI is easy: many online free services allows to download pictograms, find matching colours, build fancy logos; in the end, you need a designer “just” to manipulate photoshop and beautify your UX preparation;

• Have a pool of beta testers (start to build it from Day 1) and make sure to integrate a crash report tool so you know what to fix;

• Take the time to do some staging to showcase your app in a beautiful manner (again, many free resources online).

Unlimited FREE ressources:

• http://retinaicon.com/

• http://muz.li/

• http://rgb.today/

• http://www.flaticon.com/

• http://www.mobile-patterns.com/

• http://line25.com/articles/20-free-psds-to-mockup-your-app-interface-designs

• http://colorkit.maketheweb.pl/?ref=producthunt

• https://dribbble.com/

…


© SMOKIO

http://retinaicon.com/

http://muz.li/

http://rgb.today/

http://www.flaticon.com/

http://www.mobile-patterns.com/

http://line25.com/articles/20-free-psds-to-mockup-your-app-interface-designs

http://colorkit.maketheweb.pl/?ref=producthunt

https://dribbble.com/

How to…Deal with China

It’s important to go as early as possible to have an understanding on how business works locally and mostly because designing a product requires your Chinese partner to validate feasibility; and you may need to adjust your product according to its capabilities;

Prepare your trip very well: logistics, list of appointments with organized rolodex, prototype ready for demonstration, to-do list, and ideally a translator who will join the ride;

Formalize everything and systematically send detailed email after meetings with actions and deadlines;

100 units is not the same than 10,000 units (mass production) in terms of organisation and quality of outcome;

There will be many unplanned details and bad news down the road. Be patient and stay focused on the end goal;

Parallelize as much as possible (packaging, components sourcing, sub-assembly or PCB manufacturing);

Test every unit manually or pay a really good QC company to handle the work.


© SMOKIO

Wrap-up

Wrap-up10 Golden rules

1. Validate your idea: invite your 10 smartest friends for dinner and ask for their opinion and if they would buy your product; more broadly, make sure to speak about your idea as much as possible to validate, hire, get introduced and learn;

2. Try to raise money with an MVP - if you can’t do it, it probably means that your idea is weak or something doesn’t work right;

3. The iPhone 1 was not perfect: it’s better to ship average than to ship nothing; launch quickly with as little flaws as possible and with one or two killer features to collect customers insights and then launch a perfect v2;

4. Use free ressources: for design, mailing, communication or HR;

5. Use SaaS / cheap solutions: for anything that is not your core business (which is to build a great product) but very important from a customer stand point; in general, master what is “easy”;

6. Don’t drop the pressure: as well known, the last 20% of the work takes most time and energy;

7. Chinese workers are amazing executant and beat any other country in speed and cost; learn how to work with them and don’t behave as if France were a superpower dominating Chinese’s culture (it’s in fact all the way around);

8. Keep repeating the same boring stuffs over and over and don’t assume. “Assumptions is the mother of all f***-ups!”

9. What is essential is priceless / what is not is always too expensive. Bootstrap as much as you can but be OK to spend a lot of money for super important things;

10.Have an experienced advisor / BA on board to help figuring out what’s right to do.


© SMOKIO

Steve AnaviKeep in touch?

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @steve_blabla

Medium: @sta


mailto:[email protected]

Steve Anavi - Smokio presentation Manufacturing meetup April 22, 2015

Devices & Hardware

Transcript of Steve Anavi - Smokio presentation Manufacturing meetup April 22, 2015