část konstrukce chytré kabelky IRMA
Accelerator, Interviews, Accelerator participant experience

Lots of information at the right time: The accelerator through the eyes of Klára Šmakalová (IRMA)

In a new video, we asked Klára Šmakalová about her personal experience of developing the smart handbag IRMA within the PrusaLab hardware accelerator. How did she and Jakub Stedina experience acceleration at PrusaLab? What did it bring them and how did their project move forward during that time? Watch the video and find out which key moments decided their success.

Right place, right time

The accelerator came their way at just the right time – exactly when they were facing important decisions about the development of their product and didn't know where to start. When they joined the PrusaLab hardware accelerator, they gained the support of an experienced development team, access to a diverse range of manufacturing technologies, facilities for testing and improving designs, as well as guidance from experienced mentors and experts in marketing, logistics, financial planning, production scaling, and more.

“When you look back at it, it was a lot of information that we got at the right time and quite concentratedly, and we would have got to it significantly more slowly on our own.” says Klára Šmakalová.

3D printing? Ultimately a minor role

At first, they thought the key technology would be 3D printing. Although they used it extensively for rapid prototyping, it eventually turned out that the biggest challenge was properly integrating the electronic components with the structural elements of the handbag, which was no problem for the well-rounded development team.

Mentoring and entrepreneurship

Klára recalls mentoringas one of the biggest benefits of the acceleration. Thanks to it, they understood that areas such as financial planning or logistics are best tackled before circumstances force you to. For example, contact with DHL showed them that developing a product is not enough – having a well-thought-out plan for getting it to customers is just as important.

The IRMA project shows that with a good idea, an experienced team and the right support, it is possible to significantly speed up development and overcome key challenges more effectively. The speed of bringing a product to market often decides its success, and the PrusaLab hardware accelerator helps startups master this process. We are proud to have been part of the development of the IRMA handbag and look forward to more great projects we will support here.

We wrote about the smart IRMA handbag 👉 here and here.

More about 👉 PrusaLab hardware accelerator 👈