How this Dutch Start-up combines innovation and (Dutch) design to help you solve problems you didn’t know you had
Netherlands is home to one of the biggest startup hubs in Europe. It takes a lot of creativity to run a successful start-up. In a survey, it shows that the Dutch clearly outpaced the UK and the US when it comes to innovation and design. Our innovative skills go so far that we even have invented robot birds to chase away their natural counterparts.
While the Dutch startup scene is mostly tech-related (makes sense since Netherlands boasts Europe’s fastest internet speed and the second-highest broadband penetration) I got excited discovering a startup that infuses innovation to your everyday product, such as the conventional powerstrip, and bringing some seriously awesome-looking products to today’s mobile individuals (yes you! That DutchReview reader!) Just three years into their establishment, they had already won the coveted Red Dot Design Award for their best-selling product.
The story of Allocacoc
I ran into the founders of Allocacoc, Yixia and Arthur, at the Dutch Design week (makes sense right?) and starting chatting about how they came up with their PowerCube (ironically with everybody around us fumbling with phone chargers and laptops).
Back in 2010 they just graduated as industrial designers, striving to come up with a revolutionary idea they sat down and brainstormed with their laptops only to be constantly distracted by kitten-pics (I can only assume) and bulky plugs blocking each when trying to use the regular power strip.
The PowerCube!
It wasn’t as easy as I make it sound. The founders told me that they had their Eureka-moment when they thought of a cube-shaped for it, instead of something tiny and rectangular.
Then they also worked in an USB-component, because that’s how you make things really work for you when a person owns 3.64 electronic devices on average.
The PowerCube Evolution
For the Tons of Devices That Need Plugging
The PowerCube |Extended USB| solves the plug-and-power problem. You can imagine that us DutchReview people work in tiny bars all the time with tons of laptops, cameras and other stuff that needs plugging. Working while travelling can sometimes get frustrating, we’ve all been there. Sitting in some coffee shop working before a flight AND charging both a phone and a camera is super easy with the 2 USB ports, a must-have for any photographer.
For the Traveling Folks Constantly on the Move
And just like you traveling folks we’re on the move constantly and have no special desire to carry a bunch of travel adapters along. The PowerCube |ReWirable USB| is the perfect gift for your friends who keep traveling to countries with foreign sockets. It comes with 3 super handy plugs for every conceivable power outlet in the world. Making sure that you’ve got the advantage of those 5 plugs everywhere in the world.
For Those Lazy Winter Nights
And last but certainly not least there’s the PowerCube |Remote| that lets you control your plugged-in devices through a little fancy battery-free remote from anywhere in your room. Pure magic (and science). Super-convenient!
What are you giving away this year with Sinterklaas?
Still looking for a great present for under the Christmas-tree or in the ‘Sinterklaas-bag’? Forget about photo frames or another coffee mug, the PowerCube is a gift that would really put a smile on anyone’s face. The kind of smile that says “I could use that”. Here’s the icing on the cake: get a 10% discount by using code DUTCHREVIEW at their webshop. You’re welcome!
Intrigued? Take a look at DesignNest
What also really stood out from my talk with Yixia and Arthur was their passion for design and how they translated that into the way their business is being run. Enter DesignNest, a unique initiative and opportunity for young creators to get their products onto the shelves of stores worldwide – and you know, actually created.
It’s more than a traditional crowdfunding service in the sense that they’ll help you to go from the initial idea to the actual selling of products in a store.
*we worked together with Allocacoc to bring you this article (and also because we’re really in a mess with all those powercords at DutchReview all the time)