A casesmpl carrier offers four layers of protection and pockets for a variety of devices. Screenshot from casesmpl.com
Toting their electronics from appointment to appointment, Mike Colwell and Charise Flynn grew increasingly frustrated with the lack of a protective container for all their devices that was, well, simple.
“While there are thousands of sleeves and countless backpacks, messenger bags, etc., there was nothing on the market that fit our needs,” Colwell said in an email. “As we talked to others, we received the same feedback. There was a gap in the market.”
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Colwell (left), the executive director of the Business Innovation Zone, and Flynn (right), the COO of Dwolla, are hoping to fill that gap with their new side project, casesmpl. Casesmpl designs and sells cases for iPads, Kindles and Macbook Airs. Currently, the company offers six cases — ballistic nylon and leatherette versions of each of its three device-carriers — that range in price from $59-$84.
Colwell and Flynn began discussing the idea for casesmpl in October and built two rounds of prototypes in the winter. After a January pilot and a couple months of feedback-gathering, the cases were ready in May, and the company’s website went live earlier this month.
Justin Schoen of eComegy has helped casesmpl with SEO, and Drew McClellan has worked on marketing for the company. Colwell and Flynn, who have funded the project themselves, came up with the cases’ designs with the help of their manufacturer, Chicago-based Elegant Packaging.
The cases feature a protective outer shell, internal layers of high-density, cross-linked and mid-density foam and are finished with an inner layer of super-soft brushed polyester. A removable rigid divider has pockets for phones, pens, business cards, headphones, keys and more.
“We are very happy with the design,” Colwell said. “More importantly, our customer have been very positive with the design. There has been some great feedback on future options.”
Colwell declined to discuss sales figures so far but said they are “on target with our original expectations.” And now that Colwell and Flynn have solved their own electronics-carrying headaches, they’re hoping to help others do the same.
“We are working to build a presence in a couple of vertical markets based on the usage of the case,” Colwell said. “We are interested in building a niche brand that will be durable over time. We plan to remain only an eCommerce company and do not plan to go into distribution.”
For more from Mike Colwell on casesmpl, see the video below.
