For all you athletes and weekend warriors, are you a fan of your earphones? Our team had the opportunity to interview the founder of Spero Audio, Cival Van Der Lubbe. He’s on the verge of creating a product that all athletes will hope to wear while they train.
Tell us about yourself.
I grew up on a tropical Caribbean island, Curacao, with an extensive appreciation for my natural surroundings, spending most of my time in the water, diving, kitesurfing, among other recreational activities.
I managed to leave the island and study business in Boston, which didn’t last long before I booked a flight ticket to Indonesia. I haven’t stopped traveling since that trip. On my journey, I grew numerous online businesses and brands such as SeavalShop.com and TropicalDesignLab.com and automated them to run on their own. Then I started Spero Audio with my new business Partner Komal Singh Choong, a good friend who worked at SpaceX after building Formula SAE cars. We brought only the best engineers and designers on board and it’s a company destined for success. The idea was to create earphones, much like contact lenses, you just pop them in and forget they’re there. But they deliver a seamlessly immersive experience with beautiful quality. I was never able to take earphones on the water with me while kitesurfing, so we built them and now we can. That’s finally the end of wired earphones.
What is Spero’s mission and vision?
Our mission is to create the most versatile and best earphones for athletes. Our vision is to market our brand and innovative products in the action sports market alongside GoPro and RedBull.
What makes Spero unique? What’s your competitive advantage?
Spero has completely removed the wires and created two autonomous earphones that fit snug and comfortably in your ear to deliver beautiful sound quality.
Other brands have tried to approach the wireless market but failed to get rid of the wires completely. They also had trouble making the earphones small enough to fit snug and comfortably in your ears for better in-ear retention. You can take Spero earphones anywhere with you and not be afraid to lose them or break them. They’re completely waterproof and shock resistant!
An additional feature includes audio transparency, which allows the user to determine the amount of ambient noise let in. For instance, it will block out wind noise while cycling, but allow you to hear oncoming traffic for safety. You don’t need to pull them out when your buddies try to talk to you at the gym.
When can our audience pre-order Spero and how much will it cost?
The earphones will cost $250-299 and will preorder at an even lower cost beginning in April.
When did you know you wanted to be an entrepreneur?
I followed in my dad’s footsteps. Like him, I wanted to take matters and my life into my own hands and push for something bigger. I wanted to make a difference and feel limitless at doing this. There was never a question. The biggest challenge of being an entrepreneur is that it’s always all on you, and it’s 24-7. For those interested in being entrepreneurs, set your priorities in order and remember to think logically.
Lastly, what’s your definition of luxury?
Living a life full of limitless travel and new experiences, with loved ones of course.
Thanks for your time, Cival. We look forward to your product launch.