On Friday, FMW launched a Kickstarter campaign with the mission to bring their new patent pending track and snap swivel system to mobile phone lovers around the world.
Their projects centers around the “MPD Stealth Kit,” which includes a radio frequency shield, a pouch for your phone, and “stealth tracks,” which, when peeled and pressed, forms a semi-permanent washable bond on most fabrics and surfaces.
With the the track and snap swivel system, you can easily attach your phone to surfaces and fabrics for easy mobile access.
This project is the brainchild of Kim Davis and her family, who formed formed Functional MobileWear (FMW) and invented the MDP, having filed multiple patents late last year. The product emerged from the growing “phone dropping syndrom,” and the increasing need to have quick and efficient access to your mobile device at all times.
Since October, the family has received great product feedback from the community. In March of 2013, the United States Army ordered prototype MDP X kits for immediate testing in their new smartphone program at Fort Bliss.
I had the chance to sit down with Kim to get some of her insights on the new campaign and what drives her passion for creation in the face of some challenging health issues.
Who is behind Functional Mobile Wear?
We are a family. Although Kim Davis is the youngest of the five siblings and only girl, she is considered the fierce warrior in the family because the rest of us are in awe of her strength in the face of some challenging health issues. Bruce, the oldest and Cameron in the middle are the creative energies in the family as both have backgrounds in music & multimedia production. Currently, they’re focused on developing the modular mobile device pocket (MDP) which they invented, into a world class product.
The Davis’s formed Functional MobileWear (FMW) to take the MDP to market and crowdfunding was the first choice right from the start. Because of Kim’s administrative background she was offered the lead role in FMW while the brothers handle the production and tech details.
Our joint goal is to produce the best product possible at this time and then we’ll continue to improve and embellish our product to be among the best in the world if not THE best in our niche market – modular mobile device pockets.
We have a commitment to excellence and this is just the beginning.
What was the underlying reason that drove you to create this product? Where did the passion come from?
In September of 2012, Cameron got the idea to produce an accessory that enables you to wear your phone like a watch (the Mobile ArmChair). Bruce did the research for Cameron to analyze the viability of such a product and along the way noticed there was nothing on the market that would allow you to quickly access your device and text with your thumbs which is how Bruce likes to text.
After scouring the world and patent offices, Bruce and Cameron began designing ways to integrate mobile devices within clothing which seemed the only way to enable fast access and thumb texting!
In October of 2013, the first of multiple patents were filed for the MDP and related developments. During the intensive R&D of this simple yet unique product we noticed it also solves the phone losing and phone dropping syndrome that a lot of us have. Now our goal is to keep on improving the design and functionality of the MDP while making you look great while using it!
What’s the backstory behind securing an order from US Army?
In early December of 2012 we ran across a post about the U.S. Army developing their own mobile devices for military use. We contacted the Director of the program and he said our timing was great because they had been looking for something like an MDP X but could not find it on the market. He said that the android operating system had just been approved for use and the ios operating system was on the verge of being approved.
We stayed in touch with the director as we refined our designs for military uses and commercial uses. In March the director contacted us regarding the ios approval and now they wanted to test our MDP X kits. The director ordered prototypes for the iPad mini and similar devices. He also requested MDPs for the Bionic mobile device and a few others. We are awaiting orders – no pun intended!
The first report from the army said they were very happy with the MDP X kits yet suggestions were made by the director to address a fastening option and of course we quickly incorporated the suggestion and provided the solution. Our commercial version is the MDP Stealth kit and so far we’ve received some very good feedback from those who know how it works.
Why did you decide to go with Kickstarter to raise funds?
I think Kickstarter is a welcome sign of the self-empowerment era. Creators of all kinds can see their ideas come to fruition very quickly when they have something people want at a reasonable price. I don’t see those old school gatekeepers that used to impede fresh ideas from emerging among the crowdfunding community. In fact it is just the opposite. Whenever I want something special I’m starting to look on Kickstarter or Indiegogo first. I guess, all you can do is your best presentation possible and then – let the community do the rest.
Check out their Kickstarter campaign here!
