All good things happen when you are NAKED... that's exactly what the three founders of NAKED Optics, Flo, Chris and Phil, thought. Well, or something like that... In the first part of the story about NAKED Optics you can find out who the three guys are and how the idea for the brand came about.
The idea about NAKED was born
Time frames: 2012-2013
What happened during this time? Idea arises in Asia, Flo and Chris meet again in Singapore and meet Phil in Sri Lanka, 😱
Quote from Christoph about the ski goggles idea "I haven't heard such a crappy idea for a long time"
What are 3 young Austrians, who are enthusiastic about winter sports, talking about on the beach in Southeast Asia at 30 degrees ...? Exactly, you guessed it right - about ski goggles. For many sports, the right equipment and the best equipment is often very expensive due to the complex commercial structures. Of course, this hurts students and their tight budgets in particular. However, if you sell glasses directly, without intermediaries, then high-quality glasses are more cost-effective for the end consumer. That's exactly what Flo realized during his year abroad in Singapore and told his old schoolmate Chris about the realization. Coincidentally, he was also in Singapore at the time. At first, Chris wasn't convinced at all. After several Tiger beers, he was finally able to warm to the idea. But before NAKED was founded, Flo met the young sports enthusiast Phil while looking for accommodation while kitesurfing in Sri Lanka. So the trio was complete. 🤙🏻
The first order from the producer
After several brainstorming sessions, they bought the first 10 models from a manufacturer in 2013, whom Flo met by chance through a contact in Singapore. The quality of the ski goggles was already convincing at this point. But the three were anything but satisfied with the designs. As a result, Flo, Chris and Phil couldn't get the topic of self-employment out of their heads. Et voila: NAKED was born. 🤩
 |
 |
From founding the company to the first Instagram post
Time frames: 2014
What happened during this time? Company foundation, homepage was designed, first Instagram post, first "professional photo shoot" and purchase of further products 🙌
Quote from Florian about the first Instagram post "I bet that we got 500 likes on the first picture"
The following year was very eventful for the boys. In addition to the first consultation with the WKO on the different company forms, Phil designed the first logo drafts, the online shop was set up on Wordpress with Photoshopped photos and the first photo shoot was imminent. NAKED was initially a sole proprietorship. The boys plundered their not very well fed piggy banks to finance the first product purchase of 350 pieces of ski goggles (EDGE and GLOBE). As a young start-up, you naturally have fewer resources at your disposal. Therefore, the orders were initially packed and taken to the post office. The marketing budget was also rather small (or not available). In the beginning, NAKED was almost exclusively represented on Facebook, since Instagram was only really taking off in Europe at the time. Loyal companions of NAKED since day one are our opinion leaders Martin Loinger and Michi Strauss 💖 Other highlights of this year were the first sale in the online shop (after just a few days and not after months as believed), the first repeat order from the producer two months later and the first Instagram post. And yes, you see correctly - the first "professional" photo shoot took place at home on a bench 😜
 |
 |
What's next for NAKED?
Many vacationers take souvenirs with them from vacation. So Chris, Flo and Phil came back from Asia with the idea of having their own ski goggles produced. You can read how things went after the first two business years of NAKED Optics in the second part of the story about NAKED Optics 🤙