So you thought the "-as-a-service" suffix only applied to software? As in so many cases - things that the technology industry is so overly proud of (SaaS and Web 2.0 business models!) are everyday occurrences in the real world.
Take ski boots. Plastic shell, foam liner, metal buckles. Lots of high tech materials, gobs of "fashion", and plenty of marketing. So where's the innovation? How about mass customization? How about "real-time", "location-aware", mass customization? What are we talking about?
What's the best ski boot you can buy?
Did you answer "whichever one fits best?" Then you win today's prize. And how to get a ski boot that fits best?
Custom fit of course. That's why we're so impressed with Surefoot - a very impressive company with a way cool story. If you're familiar with Surefoot, you're probably thinking, "oh yeah, custom ski boots. I've heard of that." But it's not the "custom" aspect that we're so impressed with. You can get a better custom fit from a master boot fitter using a combination of expertise and manual labor.
No - the cool thing about Surefoot is that they've put the stores on the mountains. Not where you live, not down the road. But on the mountain. Why does that matter? Because getting "custom" right is an iterative process. Try it one way, make some adjustments, try again, adjust again. And the only way to try your custom ski boots is to ski in them. And the only way to get through a couple iterations of adjustments is if the shop is where you're skiing!
So here's to the innovative folks at Surefoot! Not for the very impressive displays, or foot measuring equipment, or in-the-shop molding process. But for the simple (but expensive) step of putting the shops on the mountain.
Ain't innovation fun!
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