Seven questions, seven answers. We spoke with Teja, Sven and Florian, founders of Mr. Beam, spoken. The occasion is a happy one: the funding goal of the Kickstarter campaign for the new laser cutter Mr Beam II has already been exceeded by more than six times, halfway through its run.
1. Who are you and what do you do? Please briefly introduce yourself and your product!
We design, build, and sell laser cutting and engraving machines that fit on any desk and can be operated by anyone. We are:
Teja (36), graduate in computer science and inventor of the Mr Beam, was annoyed by the bulky and expensive laser cutters and their extremely cumbersome operation. He had the idea of developing an easy-to-use, flexible laser cutter that would fit on any desk.
Sven (35), a graduate engineer (FH) in electrical engineering, worked for many years as an aircraft systems engineer and met Teja during his postgraduate studies in Business Creation and Innovation (EMBA) at the Technical University of Munich. He was immediately enthusiastic about the idea and joined the company to apply his newly acquired financial and business creation know-how at Mr Beam Lasers UG.
Florian (30), a graduate engineer in aerospace engineering, has previously worked as a rocket developer and mission engineer. With his software and hardware expertise, he is a perfect addition to the team to dedicate himself to the task of making laser cutting accessible to everyone!
As CEO, CFO and CTO, we developed the hardware, software and business strategy and brought an easy-to-use, platform-independent and affordable laser cutter and engraver to market readiness.
2. But that's been around for a long time!
No! A ready-to-use laser cutting and engraving device in a protective housing that fits on any desk and can be operated with any device with an internet browser doesn't yet exist. Established laser cutter manufacturers have so far focused on industrial customers. Mr Beam also differs in the type of laser source: A laser diode allows for a much more space-saving design with fewer components. In particular, expensive, sensitive mirrors and complex water cooling can be dispensed with. This contributes significantly to the low price and the compact housing.
3. What has been your biggest challenge so far?
We've got the technology down pat. Founding a company worked out, too. Marketing is a real challenge! Communicating with the press, posting on social media channels, and simply keeping everyone constantly updated takes a lot of time and resources. This is new to us, and we're trying our best—but we're still learning a lot along the way.
4. Let’s get down to business: How is business going?
Our Kickstarter campaign for Mr Beam II went live two weeks ago. We were all very excited and hoped it would do as well as our first campaign in 2014, which is still one of the top 31 most successful campaigns on Kickstarter.
So far, things are looking very good. We reached our funding goal of €80,000 in just four hours. We've now exceeded 700% of the total, and the campaign has 15 days left.
Of course, we are always open to investments.
5. What does Munich mean to you?
Munich is a wonderful city. Unfortunately, we haven't really been able to leave our office in Neuhausen in the last few months and weeks. But the startup scene in Munich is very active. Whenever we've made it to a startup meeting, we've met other impressive startup teams with great ideas and exchanged ideas with them.
Crowdfunding appears to be an increasingly popular form of financing for startups. It's always exciting to exchange ideas about crowdfunding with other startups.
Munich, with its large student population, also offers a good foundation for building a startup. Many find working at a startup more exciting than at a large, established company. Typically, you get insight into business development everywhere and can—or rather, are required—to get involved in every aspect of the process.
6. How will your startup become the next unicorn? Or will we see you soon at Epic Fail Night?
The market will decide that. We are, of course, working toward achieving unicorn status.
An epic fail is almost never truly an epic fail, because the knowledge gained would be incredibly valuable. Then you can only do better next time.
7. Where are you more likely to meet for an after-work beer: in the Taxisgarten or at the Chinese Tower?
As a young tech, hardware startup, you simply don't have a day off. You can often find us in the "butter" on Blutenburgstrasse for a quick business lunch. Then we continue working.
