© Discovalley

The company we’re going to introduce today is Discovalley, a developer of a personal portable air purifier. Let’s hear from company CEO Kim Jong-baek.

People may have thought that they would need a particular product or service. But they tend to forget about it because they are too busy or they simply don’t know how to produce it. The same goes for me, so I would jot down any new ideas on my pocket notebook. And to unveil these new ideas, I started my own business in March of 2019. I previously worked as an advertising planner for eleven years.

I had a child after so much difficulty. And afterwards, I began to look at the world from a different angle. I suspected that we were wasting resources that would otherwise be used by the next generation. I wondered how to create products that would spend minimal resources but still maximize user satisfaction. With this vision in mind, I set up my own firm.

Before establishing his company, Kim showed keen interest in creative products. After he had his own child, he became interested in the environment and paid attention to air purifiers. Demand for air purifiers has been on the rise, as fine dust particles pose serious health risks all year round. But there was no affordable air purifier in the market.

The name of his company, Discovalley, is the combination of disco ball and Silicon Valley. A disco ball is a lighting accessory that illuminates various colors in multiple directions, and Silicon Valley is called a cradle of innovation. The name contains the company’s determination to collect new, shining ideas and grow into an innovative company. Indeed, the firm came up with a brilliant idea to develop an air purifier.

An air purifier has a very simple structure. Typically, it consists of two parts—an electric fan that takes in and discharges air, and a filter that removes dust particles. Despite the simple structure, air purifiers are pretty expensive.

Our team members and partner firms wondered how to resolve this problem. We turned our eyes to handheld cooling fans, which can efficiently inhale air and blow out wind at relatively long distances. Our new product named FINEPLuG is a personal portable air purifier combined with a 4-inch handheld fan that is commonly found in households.

The portable air purifier market in Korea has grown fast to reach 1.4 million units in 2018, with a variety of models available in the market. Among them, Discovalley’s product clearly stands out, as it can be attached to a portable fan.

Portable fans have become a must-have item for the summer in recent years. A 5-watt fan can produce strong wind, featuring the wind speed of more than 30 kilometers per hour and 4.5-meter-long blowing-in distance. The motor is as powerful as the fan installed in a high-performance portable air purifier.

While trying hard to create an inexpensive yet practical air purifier, Discovalley floated an idea of combining an air purifier with a 4-inch portable fan. After much discussion and repeated design changes, the company successfully developed a new product. An air purifier, with its parts on top and bottom removed, can be inserted into a portable fan to transform into a new air purifier for a single person. The small device is 10 centimeters in diameter and 7 centimeters high, and only weighs less than 185 grams. The compact-size air purifier ensures greater portability without compromising performance.

© Discovalley

Fine dust concentrations were measured within the chamber to assess the performance of the new air purifier. The test showed that fine dust particles were reduced from 999 microgram per cubic meter to 9 within a minute, indicating the level of the particles turned from “very bad” to “very good.”

Another test showed that the filtered clean air spreads up to two meters. The efficient air flow has the effect of cleaning the air in a small, personal space. This portable air purifier, FINEPLuG, can be used in an outdoor space as well, such as camping grounds, ballparks and football stadiums. It is reasonably priced at between 8 and 16 US dollars. The filter lasts for about three months on average, although its lifespan may vary according to the environment.

Performance tests showed that FINEPLuG is capable of purifying air quickly and stably. In a car or a baby carriage, the air purifier turns the level of fine dust particles from “bad” to “very good” just in one and a half to two minutes. What’s better is that it’s easy on the pocket. On top of the creative idea and low prices, Discovalley put a great deal of effort into the product design as well. Through effective collaboration with professional designers, the company created a simple and cute design, which appeals greatly to young students and office workers in their 30s and 40s alike.

Before launching the new product, the company unveiled it through the crowd-funding platform, Wadiz Funding. The personal air purifier drew an enthusiastic response. It reached 100 percent of the initial target in just one day and a whopping 1,150 percent in the second week. The company has also seen an increase in inquiries from overseas.

We’ve received inquiries from companies in China and in Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia and Vietnam, locations with lower air quality. We’re in the process of adjusting the production volume and price. To our surprise, Japan made contact with us. Our product probably attracts the attention of Japanese consumers who are fond of creative products with cute designs.

I think it is more challenging to expand our presence in the domestic market. Local consumers here seem to believe that only high-priced air purifiers can perform well. It is difficult for a small startup like us to change this perception. But we’ll continue to work hard and reach out to consumers with sincerity. This is what people who helped with our product’s release want and why our company exists.

Discovalley came up with a novel idea to develop an affordable portable air purifier. We’re looking forward to another fresh challenge of this company, which refused to conform to the usual stereotype that air purifiers are expensive.