Chris Forgey Talks about Light Bohrd

Chris Forgey Talks about Light Bohrd

Where are you from originally?  

I was born in Groton, CT, but grew up in Lubbock, Texas.

What university did you go to?  

Texas Tech University.

What is the idea behind your startup?  

My oldest son was the inspiration behind the idea.  My wife and I bought him a skateboard for his 8^th birthday.  It quickly became his biggest passion in life.  So of course, as parents we supported his passion by taking him all over to skate parks.  I spent countless hours filming him and taking pictures.  One night he and I were talking about some of pictures and I came up with the idea of adding lights to the bottom of the board for better artistic effect.  So that led us on our journey to see if we could make it happen.  The idea and technology have evolved from that point.

What need does it fulfill?  

Our lighting technology has evolved with a purpose of improving the way people are seen.  Better visibility improves safety.

What exactly does it do?  

Our lighting technology is unique in that it’s fully embedded.  There are no wires, switches or batteries to worry about.  The lights are motion activated and the internal power source is wirelessly charged.

Who is it for?  

We’re seeding our technology into running apparel, snowboards, marketing apparel and helmets to name just a few of the applications.  Our next focus will be safety apparel.

What was the most challenging aspect of starting up?  

There are many obstacles and challenges with starting up a business.  We originally had a focus on bringing our own product to market.  This is a very difficult challenge.  Don’t underestimate the importance of branding and marketing.

What is the next step for you and your business?  

We’re now ready to scale the business by recruiting the right team and talent to exploit our technology and seed it into several market applications.

  

What advice do you have for entrepreneurs?   

There will be many ups and downs.  The key is to keep pressing forward.  Build out a strong advisory board.

  

What resource have you found to be the most helpful and why?  

Other entrepreneurs that have had success.  They can more easily help you navigate through each stage as an entrepreneur.  They help you avoid some of the pitfalls that can detract from the real things that matter in getting your business off the ground.