We are excited to present the very first Outmore newsletter. Here it is...
Welcome to Outmore Living
Hi! Before saying much more, we’ll get two questions out of the way:
1. Why am I writing this?
2. Why are you receiving it?
The answer – I have co-founded a company with Alex Duncan called Outmore Living, and as a recipient, you have played some contributing role to Outmore. Whether big or small, we wouldn’t be here today without your support and feedback. So, first and foremost, we’d like to thank you.
This newsletter, which I plan to write monthly, will be used both as a way to acknowledge that support and to bring you aboard during our great journey. If at any point you choose to eject, the “unsubscribe” button is available (and highly discouraged).
Before jumping in, a quick word on how I’ll write these going forward – these letters will contain three sections:
1. Co-founder Perspectives
2. Company Updates
3. Areas of Focus
Despite laying out that clear, organized structure, this first letter will take its own form.
Instead, we will begin with a background on what Outmore Living is and why we’ve set out to build it, followed by a status post and roadmap outline for the company.
What’s Outmore Living and Why?
Almost two years ago, I was sitting around a fire when my mom insisted that we move back inside because she was too cold. For those of you that know my mom, this should be no surprise (sorry mom), but for anyone who also knows me, you can probably imagine my non-submissive response.
After my best plea, it was clear that I was being overruled and the group was heading inside. In that moment, I was upset, but I also recognized that my mom was right. Despite being around a fire, wrapped in blankets, and with a heated tower next to us, everyone was cold. It was in that moment of discovery that I blurted out, “firepits don’t keep you warm. I wish our seats were heated.” Outmore Living was born.
What my mom had stumbled upon was a massive problem that all of us have faced: there are no existing products that keep consumers comfortable when it is cold outside. However, what I didn't realize at that time but I know now is that this problem extends well beyond consumers. In fact, what we have learned through 200+ interviews and countless research is that this problem may be even bigger for businesses. As an example, the chart below shows Austin’s alcohol receipts by monthly temperature deviation. 
What stands out is that the best weather months (March, October, April, and May) are also when the highest amount of alcohol is sold at commercial spaces. On the contrary, the coldest months (January and February) are when the least amount of alcohol is sold. This story exists for food as well, and this delta is consistent in most cities across America.
Alex and I believe that if we can provide a product that unlocks revenue for commercial spaces during cold weather months, B2B customers will look at Outmore Living as a future revenue investment instead of a lost capital expense. With that value proposition, Outmore Living has the opportunity to disrupt the entire B2B outdoor furniture market, a $3.5B opportunity.
So, this spring we plan to launch our first product line, the Fernoture Collection, which will feature the first-ever battery powered heated outdoor furniture in the world. This product will solve a massive immediate need in the market while also establishing Outmore Living as a technology and quality leader into the outdoor living space.
As we look to the future, we plan to use technology to forever change outdoor living, similarly to how Nest changed the thermostat or Uber disrupted the taxi industry. We are excited to have you join us on this journey!
What are we focused on?
Funding conversations kicked off this month. The strategy behind it has been one of securing strategic angel investors (ex. founders/executives; deep-knowledge industry players; sales lead gen facilitators) and/or pre-seed-focused funds to the cap table. This raise offers the chance to both add strategic value and gain market validation, in addition to capitalizing the company for our next stage.
Ways to help —
Any introductions to strong angel investors or pre-seed funds that come to mind are warmly welcomed and appreciated. Investors with a consumer focus is a plus. Also, I can share the deck with anyone receiving this note - just ping me at kevin@outmoreliving.com.
First, an explanation – we are in the final stages of sourcing and pricing our initial product line. By next month, I will be excited to share the details with everyone. Once we have everything finalized, we plan to both launch a presale for consumers and also finalize some verbal and written agreements with our B2B pilot partners (I will share these details once we finalize the terms).
Ways to help —
As an early-stage startup, buying our presale provides much needed capital for us to place our initial purchase order. Additionally, any introductions to commercial spaces (hotels, country clubs, bars, restaurants, etc.) that you think might want our product would be greatly appreciated.
For us to kickoff objective #2, we must first finalize our designs. We are about 90% finished with our renderings, but it feels like the last 10% is the most important and most time consuming. Our goal is to have these designs done asap, so that we can share with potential customers and move onto sourcing the final product.
Ways to help —
If you have a design background or a good eye for design, please let us know. We’d love to run our initial renderings by anyone and get their feedback.
Until next month...
Kevin