Shirinoku
Product design
Startup
Marketing
Kickstarter campaign
We developed this company during lockdown, in an attempt to bring greenery into our homes, and into our lives. Houseplants are often easily forgotten at home, and die easily due to overwatering, and underwatering.
Our first product, the Noku canvas, uses a ‘Kratky’ hydroponic watering system, to allow plants to thrive at our eye level, bringing them to the forefront of our attention. It’s fully removable as it uses 3M command strips which renters already use for most hung-up objects at home.
Shirinoku is a Startup, which spun out of a 4th Year Design engineering module (enterprise roll out). Our aim, is to get a better understanding of how to run a business, and our first step of learning is through an aesthetic customer facing product, for houseplant lovers.
The name Shirinoku stems from a Japanese term ‘Shin-Rin-Yoku’, which is the art of forest bathing and immersing oneself in nature.
Shirinoku’s mission is to design products to reconnect city dwellers with nature
#BatheInTheForest
Customer facing video
Kickstarter campaign
We launched on Kickstarter in September 2021, and were fully funded within the first 4 hours, with a total funding of £139,480 in one month. We’ve since been developing our manufacturing capabilities, and fulfiling over 1000 orders worldwide. Even though the Kickstarter has officially ended, Shirinoku still exists and you can learn more/shop now at www.shirinoku.com
We were also shortlisted in the Hubbub Design by Nature competition, for its innovation in nature and environmental impact.
Shirinoku founding team: Ben Collis, Marcus Melconian, Luke Holland, Elvis lee.
Our founding team has been working on project together for 4 years. We all live together, and have all just graduated from Imperial with an MEng in design engineering. We’re great friends who want to make a difference in the world, and this is our first step!
