VU Slidestrap
VU Slidestrap was a project I started with a friend when I decided to leave full-time employment and develop my own ideas. I was keen to develop a product in the photographic market and needed it to be relatively quick and cheap to develop.
Withing 6 months I had developed a new design, sourced manufacturing partners in the UK and China, and launched a Kickstarter campaign that was over 150% funded.
Insight
A lot of photographers don’t like using the supplied camera strap as it advertises the camera’s value to potential thieves and lacks any personality.
Problem
Traditional camera straps put a lot of strain on weak neck muscles or get tangled up with bags and coats if worn across the body. Existing sling straps are expensive and have a very ‘utilitarian’ aesthetic.
Solution
Slidestrap is a cross-body camera strap and mounting plate. It holds the camera ergonomically against your body as you move around, then you simply slide the camera up to eye-level when you want to take a picture.
Quick Design Development
As I started VU Slidestrap without any upfront investment, I had to develop an innovative new product quickly and with minimal budget.
Market research and feedback validated my decision to develop a camera strap and I quickly drove the design forward by sketching concepts, making paper mock-ups and hand stitching prototypes.
Sourcing Manufacturers
Before launching the crowdfunding campaign, I needed to source suitable manufacturers to know full production costs and MOQs.
Keen to use UK manufacturers where possible, I sourced and visited a webbing manufacturer in Yorkshire. This trip allowed me to properly spec the strap quality and also led to the factory taking the strap assembly on too.
For the mounting plate, I sourced a Chinese manufacturer to keep the BoM cost on target.
Crowdfunding Success
To bring Slidestrap to market, I put together a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign. Over the course of 30 days, the campaign raised more than 150% of its £10,000 goal. Ahead of any production spend, VU Slidestrap had almost 500 pre-orders from around the world.
This success allowed me to begin production and also opened up channels with some of the largest photographic retailers, such as B&H in the US.