Did your pair of headphones fall from your ears right before you were going to defeat a woman in an argument without asking her why she is not in the kitchen?
Snugs present an excellent audio product specifically designed to fit your ears. It allows you to prove your point to whoever you are talking to and more importantly observe the greenery walking around you while you jog in the park without having to worry about loose headphones
Anything good comes at a huge cost; will the Dragons fund this costly endeavor?
Snugs at a Glance:
| Idea | Custom-fit earphones |
| Founders | Paul Jobin |
| Asked For | £80,000 For 5% |
| Accepted Deal | Did not get a deal |
| Dragon | None |
| Business status | Active |
| Episode No. | Season 14, Episode 14 |
Index:
What is Snugs?
Snugs create custom-fit tips for earphones and hearables that offer a secure fit, exceptional comfort, particularly for prolonged use, noise isolation, and improved sound quality. Snugs is on track to become a leading brand for affordable custom-fit tips.
The Snugs brand is gaining global recognition and growing month by month. The company has attracted a following of passionate journalist advocates. Snugs were dubbed as “probably the best consumer headphones in the world” by Jonathan Margolis in British Airways Online Magazine.
The company has a very loyal and happy customer base, as is evident on its Trust Pilot profile, on which our Trust Score is 4.3 / 5.
As the business develops, Snugs is looking to build a team of like-minded people who share the same passion for creating a unique audio experience for individuals and who can help the business maximize this market opportunity.
Who are the Founders of Snugs?
Paul Jobin founded Snugs in May 2013. He has a Master of Science in Computer Science from The University of Manchester. He has worked in various top-level technology companies since his graduation.
He wanted to create a custom fit tip for his everyday Etymotic earphones (not an IEM). Which he successfully did…as soon as he realized this was possible, a whole world of potential opened up.
Snugs could offer a solution to a very common problem – earphones do not fit everyone’s ears, so will fall out, and are uncomfortable.
And with many different earphones in the market, Snugs could be made for a multitude of different brands/models.
Did Snugs get a deal on Dragon’s Den?
The custom-fit design of Snugs impressed all the Dragons quite a lot.
His technological capabilities were also something that proved his mettle in the industry but the rhythm changed as soon as Paul revealed the cost of infrastructure that was required to pursue this business.
Paul revealed that equipment worth £10,000 had to be put in place to deliver the end product to consumers which had a price tag of £199.
No amount of technical innovation could make Dragons invest in an unproven and infeasible seeming business. So, Paul walked out of the Den with a lot of praise but no offer.
What happened to Snugs after Dragon’s Den?
We keep on talking about The Dragons’ Den Effect but for Snugs, it wasn’t an effect but an explosion. Google clocked 21,000 hits on its search engine related to Snugs on the night the show aired.
This number went on to grow even further and translated into sales that rocked the company. The company’s monthly sales rose by 458% as compared to the previous year.
In the following years, the company raised £1 million in several rounds of funding out of which £500,000 came out of a single round. As per a report from Businesswest,
“With the help of the innovate2succeed financial expert, Snugs was able to develop its business and investment plans to ensure its readiness for potential investment.
This resulted in several successful pitching rounds allowing the company to invest in the latest digital 3D modelling and printing technology. This investment in technology reduced the end-to-end delivery and production time to 8 days and, as a result, profit margins rose from 35 – 46 percent.”
Snugs now looks to make its presence felt all over the world in countries like the USA and China where it intends to capitalize on its first mover’s advantage and capture a sizeable market share.
Consumer Process Details:
The process of delivering a Snug to a consumer works as follows:
- You visit an Audiologist to get your ear impressions
- They will pour a silicone mold into your ears, which will go as far as the second bend in your ear – this provides a good, deep impression
- 8 – 10 minutes later, once the molds have set, they are removed and you send them to us
- They scan your impressions to create a 3D ear file
- This is then ‘modeled’ in our lab, onto your earphone of choice, and through 3D printing, a Snug is born!
Competitors of Snugs:
The innovative approach of Snugs gave it a first movers advantage but immense segment-oriented competition has emerged that occupies a considerable amount of market share posing a challenge to the pioneer.
Some of these companies are:
What is the Net Worth of Snugs?
The seasoned computer scientist proposed a deal before the Dragons that valued his company at £1.6 million. The Dragons found this valuation to be unreasonable as the company was in a very early stage at that point.
In the following years, the company raised £1 million in several rounds of funding out of which £500,000 came out of a single round.
The net worth of the company can be estimated to be just a bit more than £5 million if all the finances are taken into account.
Is Snugs still in Business?
Snugs is pretty much in business as of 2023 and has a footprint in Western Europe and the USA. It also delivers online to users whose ear impression is already with the company.
Finding just the right fit for anything is not a common occurrence in life but when it seems achievable, we see people draining their pockets for it, no matter how meaningless the output may be.
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FAQs:
What is Snugs?
Snugs create custom-fit tips for earphones and hearables that offer a secure fit, exceptional comfort, particularly for prolonged use, noise isolation, and improved sound quality.
What's the net worth of Snugs?
The net worth of the company can be estimated to be just a bit more than £5 million if all the finances are taken into account.