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Founded in 2017, KYDRA is an progressive Singapore-based model that has revolutionised the way in which we take into consideration activewear.
What started as a college undertaking for a enterprise competitors has remodeled right into a profitable crowdfunding marketing campaign and in the end, a thriving enterprise enterprise.
Co-founded by Jimmy Poh, Wong Dingyao (Ding) and Matthew Chen, KYDRA goals to offer useful and classy activewear.
KYDRA first happened when the co-founders have been nonetheless learning within the UK. Jimmy first met Ding, who studied finance and funding banking, as housemates throughout their college years. Their shared ardour for health turned them into gymnasium buddies, and their exercise classes fuelled their aspirations to create one thing distinctive collectively.
Meanwhile, Matthew was Jimmy’s former teammate in Temasek Polytechnic’s tennis group. The images fanatic naturally pursued a level in photojournalism, and he later helped out the duo as their “creative eye”.
While Matthew formally joined the corporate at a later stage, he’s thought-about an integral a part of the founding group. Although the 31-year-old trio had various backgrounds, their shared pursuits laid the muse for his or her entrepreneurial enterprise.
They raised US$10K on Indiegogo
The inspiration behind KYDRA stemmed from Jimmy and Ding’s private frustration with the inadequacies of accessible sports activities shorts then when it comes to accommodating bigger telephones and the necessity for card storage throughout gymnasium classes.
This hole out there sparked their entrepreneurial spirit, main them to conceptualise and develop a revolutionary line of sports activities shorts that addressed these ache factors.
“KYDRA started out as a business competition called Idea Fest during university back in 2016,” Jimmy advised Vulcan Post over a cellphone interview.
Through the competitors, they noticed a possibility to showcase their product and generate actual gross sales. They believed {that a} profitable crowdfunding marketing campaign would bolster their possibilities of profitable the competitors, because it demonstrated the product’s viability and demand.
We raised US$10,000 on Indiegogo. The level of it was to [serve as] a proof-of-concept to assist us win the competitors. We figured that if we might earn money like a worthwhile enterprise on paper, then technically it’s a no brainer that our enterprise can earn money on the finish of the day. With what little advertising we did, we have been really in a position to obtain our goal.
– Jimmy Poh, co-founder of KYDRA
The marketing campaign’s success not solely boosted their confidence, particularly since their college lecturer typically emphasised the significance of making a worthwhile enterprise from the outset.
The duo ultimately got here in third place within the competitors, profitable a money prize of £250. In addition to the financial reward, they have been additionally provided mentorship alternatives throughout the college, aimed toward offering steerage and help for them to kickstart their entrepreneurial journey.
“After the competition, we started getting feedback that our shorts changed the game and became the favourite pair in their wardrobes. This gave us the confidence to try out KYDRA as an actual business.”
Understanding client ache factors to create the proper merchandise
KYDRA’s analysis and growth course of is deeply rooted in figuring out buyer wants and preferences. It usually begins with an issue confronted by somebody throughout the firm, which serves as a catalyst for brainstorming classes.
The group then designs the product, selects acceptable materials, and creates a pattern. Field testing and gathering suggestions are integral elements of the method, enabling the group to refine the product iteratively till they obtain the specified performance and flexibility.
Similarly, this is applicable to their first product, the two-in-one Flex Shorts.
[These] shorts got here from our personal inconveniences when going to the gymnasium, taking part in tennis, and attending college courses. We wished a pair of shorts that look clear and structured, and carry out simply in addition to any sports activities shorts out there. We additionally wished utility [features] with out it trying like a pair of cargo shorts.
– Jimmy Poh, co-founder of KYDRA
As such, the shorts was designed with the “perfect sports shorts” in thoughts. It options inside tights which can be very stretchy, hidden pockets, in addition to an invisible zip for a cleaner end.
However, within the early days of creating the corporate, the co-founders confronted challenges as a result of their restricted background in trend. Expressing their designs and discovering the proper supplies proved to be a big hurdle.
“It took us a really long time to produce our first product, especially when what we wanted in terms of fabric and make was not common in the marketplace,” lamented Jimmy.
KYDRA ended up sourcing materials from varied areas equivalent to Taiwan and Australia, searching for materials that have been cutting-edge.
“At that period of time, they drew the line very clearly between casual wear and sportswear. They didn’t have anything that merged both, which was what we were looking for, so we went to a lot of trade shows in London, China, and even Singapore,” shared Jimmy.
“We couldn’t find that kind of material, but we found one Australian company that actually made something similar to what we were looking for. A Taiwanese company could also custom-make that kind of material, so we had to customise the materials at the beginning.”
From the conceptualisation stage in late 2015 to the ultimate product’s launch in mid-2016, KYDRA invested roughly six to eight months within the growth of the shorts.
The co-founders labored carefully with Singapore-based producers, creating a number of samples to refine the design and tackle any points. This concerned sending the prototypes to the UK for testing, leading to longer lead instances as a result of back-and-forth deliveries.
“This was extremely tiring because we couldn’t really articulate what was wrong with the product. We knew exactly what the shorts should be in our head — it’s very clear — but articulating it was very difficult. We could [only afford] to wear it and tell them what we don’t like it, but we couldn’t write down in specific technical terms as to why we don’t like it,” stated Jimmy.
Catering to the feminine demographic
KYDRA initially targeted on the lads’s sportswear market, however Jimmy stated that their growth into the ladies’s athleisure market was a pure development, pushed by the requests of their feminine pals and companions.
“We then began to look into daily pain points in the market and started to design from there,” stated Jimmy.
One important ache level noticed by Ding was the flipping of the band on his spouse’s sports activities bras throughout washing. To remedy this challenge, KYDRA merely sewed the band down, eliminating the trouble of unfolding it each time.
This easy but efficient resolution proved to be a game-changer. Additionally, bra inserts typically flipped and peeled within the wash, inflicting additional inconvenience. KYDRA addressed this by making their inserts detachable, making certain they remained agency and sturdy even after a number of washes.
Besides sports activities bras, one other space of focus for KYDRA was leggings. Jimmy famous that conventional leggings are inclined to really feel excessively heat, making them uncomfortable to put on in Singapore.
Most leggings are have been made for nations with cooler climates, just like the US, Canada and China, the place it does get chilly, so it is smart for the leggings to be thick. Hence, we wanted to discover a materials that’s cooling to the contact and intensely breathable, made for tropical climates.
– Jimmy Poh, co-founder of KYDRA
By creating a “tropical version of leggings”, KYDRA catered to the wants of ladies in such climates, providing a light-weight and comfy various.
The consideration to element prolonged to shorts as effectively, the place KYDRA included larger and spacious pockets, catering to ladies’s want for practicality. By addressing these small ache factors, KYDRA goals to reinforce the general expertise of carrying activewear and make on a regular basis actions extra handy.
According to Jimmy, KYDRA’s best-selling merchandise are at the moment their sports activities bras, leggings, and sneakers. He added that the KYDRA sneakers have been an fascinating addition to their product line, designed to enrich their leggings.
These slip-on sneakers, that includes antibacterial and waterproof properties, supply each type and performance. They elevate the general look, offering a sublime look to people attending yoga courses or carrying leggings generally.
Thriving amidst the pandemic
Building a profitable enterprise is not any small feat, and KYDRA is well-aware of the challenges that include entrepreneurship.
One of the important thing challenges they encountered was the dearth of working expertise and steerage. Manpower administration and job prioritisation posed ongoing difficulties, which solely grew extra complicated with every passing 12 months.
However, Jimmy emphasises that recognising their weaknesses and errors has been instrumental of their progress. By continuously searching for enchancment, KYDRA has been in a position to navigate by these challenges and refine their enterprise operations.
Although the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic undoubtedly impacted companies worldwide, KYDRA skilled an sudden increase throughout this time. Jimmy stated that the elevated give attention to well being and the suspension of journey have led extra individuals to put money into fitness-related merchandise, together with activewear.
Consequently, KYDRA noticed a big surge of their enterprise, with a 60 per cent progress in 2020. That identical 12 months, KYDRA additionally crossed its million-dollar income mark, indicating their robust progress trajectory.
We’re nonetheless within the thousands and thousands for certain, and have been rising over 50 per cent year-on-year.
– Jimmy Poh, co-founder of KYDRA
Despite the constructive outcomes, the pandemic did current logistical challenges for KYDRA, notably the rise in delivery freight prices.
Dealing with closures and delivery material from exterior of China into the nation additional sophisticated issues. Nevertheless, KYDRA’s resilience and flexibility allowed them to navigate by these obstacles and proceed their upward trajectory.
KYDRA’s success story is much more outstanding contemplating that they’ve been fully bootstrapped, with none exterior traders. The preliminary funding to kickstart the enterprise was lower than S$10,000, a testomony to their resourcefulness and skill to maximise their restricted sources.
Overseas growth is within the works
After 5 years as a digital-only model, KYDRA made a big transfer by opening its first bodily retailer at Takashimaya final 12 months.
We at all times felt that KYDRA is a tangible enterprise — we spend lots of time with our material and supplies, and being completely on-line didn’t do it justice. We additionally consider that clothes must be tried on to finest perceive the becoming.
– Jimmy Poh, co-founder of KYDRA
Furthermore, the attract of Orchard Road and its prestigious repute performed a task of their resolution. Jimmy believes that selecting a location with current footfall and credibility in Singapore’s buying district offers KYDRA with a foothold earlier than they increase additional in Singapore and ultimately abroad.
Looking in the direction of the longer term, KYDRA has formidable plans to “evolve the next phase of activewear”. Elaborating on this, Jimmy explains that they’re at the moment creating a brand new vary of merchandise that align with rising developments and altering perceptions of health.
KYDRA goals to cater to the evolving wants of their feminine prospects, who’re transitioning from yoga, to numerous types of cardio-intensive workouts like spin-cycling, to CrossFit actions. This shift out there calls for activewear that’s edgier, bolder, and stronger.
As such, KYDRA’s upcoming merchandise will supply a novel mix of high-impact performance with a lounge-like really feel, whereas addressing ache factors revolving these actions.
The final objective for KYDRA stays constant — to turn out to be Southeast Asia’s main activewear model. However, their ambitions lengthen past the area.
It is actively planning its growth into abroad markets, eyeing Southeast Asian areas for his or her subsequent strategic transfer. While the precise markets are nonetheless into consideration, KYDRA goals to take a deliberate strategy, increasing one market at a time.
The model envisions venturing into new territories by the top of this 12 months or early subsequent 12 months, as they work their manner in the direction of turning into a worldwide participant within the activewear market.
Featured Image Credit: KYDRA
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