We've had a lot of new people join the Pillow Talk family lately, so we wanted to share a little bit about ourselves and why we're here.
Who are we?
We are Little Riot, a small team of researchers and designers working to make things that help you to feel more connected to your loved ones, when you can't be with them.
Pillow Talk has been in the making for the past 7 years. We hail from Scotland and are currently based in London where we work with the developers and partners who make the Pillow Talk magic happen!
Pillow Talk started as a university project by our founder, Joanna. When the story went viral on the internet, Joanna realised she had come up with something that could truly make a difference to a lot of people around the world. As with most start-up journeys, it has been a long and exciting - sometimes scary - process from an idea to a real product. We have learned a lot and met some really wonderful people who have inspired us to battle through to where we are today.
Why do we care?
Our drive comes from personal experience; a frustration around the way we currently use technology to communicate. We connect with our loved ones mainly via messaging or video calls, on tiny screens. In our super-connected world, we want to make things that are warm and human; products that are part of life instead of interrupting it. We want people to be able to lie in bed with someone they love, even if they're on the other side of the world.
There have been many iterations of Pillow Talk to get it to the way it works and looks today. Research has shown that the presence of the heartbeat creates a stronger bond between two people; this is why Pillow Talk enables such an intimate interaction, even when hundred of miles apart. We have talked to a lot of people who spend time apart; we’ve tested with prototypes and had lots of positive and surprising feedback. One of our testers was epileptic and found the heartbeat reduced fitting during the night!
We are also setting up pilots with children’s hospitals to connect premature babies and sick children with their parents. We have created something that is genuinely wonderful and we are so proud and grateful for the contribution we are able to make to the world.
Building Pillow Talk
During our journey, we've been lucky enough to secure various grants and investment which has allowed for research and product development. And finally, after running a crowdfunding campaign in late 2015, we managed to start the process of putting Pillow Talk into production. We have discovered that manufacturing a hardware product is not as smooth sailing as we’d envisioned, and various hiccups and oversights along the way have often led to delays in areas outside of our control.
This has been particularly difficult as a great number of our customers were expecting their Pillow Talks to be delivered in 2016. We've always regretted having to deliver bad news of delays - as you can imagine, we too have always looked forward to seeing the product finished!
And now, we're almost there
Over the course of 7 years, Pillow Talk has gone from an idea and a sketch, to where we are today. We are lucky to work with a competent team who always ensure the product is made to high international standards. We've spent several months in China this year, overseeing the set up and the details of the production line.
Pillow Talks start rolling out this week. We eagerly await to be able to connect thousands of people all over the world.
Thank you for being part of our journey. Your purchase doesn't line the pockets of a huge corporation, it is making a dream come true. We are a tiny company who work every day to try and manage every aspect of the business (it's why we sometimes fall short).
We genuinely appreciate each and every order we receive and we are so grateful for your support.
