King of the Water Blaster? In conversation with Spyra co-founder Sebastian Walter

Sebastian! I’m so glad we’ve finally got our diaries to align. I’m absolutely in love with your terrific product! For those that haven’t had the pleasure, what is Spyra?
Thank you, Deej! Well… Water guns have been around for 40 years. But there are water guns – and then there is Spyra! So it’s a completely different class of water gun. In fact, we call them water blasters – but whatever you call them, ours are something else entirely. They outperform water pistols, squirt guns – all this stuff – because they’re high-tech, premium outdoor toys.

‘Water blaster’ does paint a decent picture of Spyra! But if there have been so many water guns available for the past 40 years, what makes Spyra necessary in an already crowded market? Oh, you know what? I should have said saturated market! Ha! Never mind!
Ha! You’re right – the water gun business is huge. There’s a million players with all sorts of products. What sets us apart is that we invented a completely harmless single-shot technology. This means that instead of one weak, lousy stream of water, you have this arrow; this single bullet of water which you can shoot really precisely, really far. I think that’s the technological advantage we have, that’s the secret sauce.

And you can shoot those single water bullets not only very precisely but also very rapidly. You’ve got different models of blaster, have you not? Walk us through a couple of the products!
Our flagship product is the SpyraThree, the latest in a line of products we’ve been developing over the past few years. That’s our go-to, premium model… It has the strongest blast, the most defined water arrow and that single-shot technology. In my opinion it’s the pinnacle of water guns… The only water gun you’ll ever need. You have this, you’re set for life. Period!

Sold! So that’s very much the top of the range; no kidult should be without one. It’s the water blaster of choice… What else?
We also cater for a younger audience with SpyraGO. That’s lighter; more agile and faster for kids. You can have a lot of fun with it as an adult too, but it’s our entry-level model and still head and shoulders above other water guns!

Then we have the SpyraLX. It doesn’t have a battery and it doesn’t need charging. Instead, you pump to prime it manually. Some people like that and it packs a really strong punch… It’s the most powerful single-shot blaster; it’ll bring you loads of fun and even kids can pump it.

So in terms of how this came about, what were you doing before you had this idea?
Well, I’m guessing you – like me – are around the age of 40… So when we were kids…

Ha! I really like you, Sebastian! I AM approaching 40 – but very much from the wrong direction! Ha! Nevertheless, go on..
Ha! Well, when we were kids in the eighties, let’s say, we loved water guns – everyone did! Because they were awesome! But then – in the nineties and the two thousands – they just became crappy, you know? The quality got cheaper, the shooting range got shorter, the plastic got nasty. And that doesn’t usually happen with products, right? Stuff usually gets better! So if you buy a car today, it’ll be better than the car you bought 30 years ago.

This is true!
Right? But somehow water guns went the other way… Manufacturers wanted them to use less shelf space; they wanted lower production costs and all this stuff. So water guns became rubbish. And I can’t tell you, Deej, how much that infuriated me…

You don’t need to tell me – I can hear it in your voice!
Absolutely! Because there I was in my late twenties, wanting to buy a great water gun for myself… I’ve got my first proper job; for the first time, I’ve got a little bit of money to buy a good water gun – and I can’t, because all that’s on the market is garbage!

So there you are, an angry 20-year-old, incandescent with rage from looking at a shelf full of shit water guns… But how did you channel that? How does that become a product?
So there I am, full of anger, rage and disgust – ha! But then I realise that I’m a product designer: I can actually make this stuff. It occurred to me that maybe it’s my mission to make the best water blaster in the world.

Well! It’s a bold statement, but I wouldn’t argue with you! How did you go about doing it? What was the creative process?
We pretty much bought every water gun on the market to understand how they all worked – and how they didn’t work! Then we started thinking about what we wanted to do differently. So at some point, we had this wall in our office that was full of all the water guns on the market. We just unscrewed them all; opened them all up and looked at everything.

Just to clarify: you say you were in an office at this point… Are you saying you had an office before you had a product?
Yes! We’re based in Munich which has a pretty good reputation for supporting innovation. So I approached the University of Munich – where I’ve never studied – and I said, “We have this science project about fluid dynamics and I’d
like some support for it.”

You really said this?
Yes! I said something about fluid dynamics and laminar flow and the like. And they said it sounded great and gave me an office. Just like that: “We support you.” And I’m forever grateful that they did because, actually, I think they kind of knew what we were doing… I mean, the stuff we had looked like guns and we were shooting water – ha!

Ha! They were just turning a blind eye! That’s funny! And you must be doing something right, Sebastian, because all the people I’ve spoken to in your company – including you and Leana on the call here – have a very positive energy… Where does this zeal come from?
Well, first of all, I’m glad that you see that. Thank you! Leana is a good example of what I like on the team: she has insane levels of energy! At a toy fair, she talks to a million people and every single time, she’s personable and has so much energy! I don’t know where it’s coming from… But Spyra does seem to attract quite enthusiastic people. That helps a lot because we have a bunch of people who believe in what we’re doing and want to tell the world about it.

Perfect answer. What’s next for Spyra, Sebastian?
Our latest product launches at the end of May – the SpyraGravity. This is the world’s first water-bomb launcher! It lets you launch our reusable magnetic water bombs up to 16 metres.

Reusable magnetic waterbombs?
Yes! They’re called SpyraBlast; they’re out now! Beyond the launcher launch, we want to team up with water parks and holiday resorts next… We want to bring the Spyra experience to more people, and not just in their homes. So we will build something that enables us to team up with water parks – well, we already do! And I think a lot more people are going to be exposed to this great experience.

Wow! Great answer! Because as the University of Munich knows, this technology is fluid dynamics! You can apply that in areas other than point and shoot. Sebastian, we need to wrap things up but let me ask you this: what’s the one question I could’ve asked you today but didn’t?
Oh! Ohhhh… I love that you’ve reversed it. Hmmm. You could’ve asked: if Spyra is so great, why aren’t we market leaders in the water gun business yet?

Ohhh! Love it! Final question then: if Spyra is so great, why aren’t you market leaders in the water gun business yet?
Ha! You are a sneaky man! Ha! Well, one of the challenges in the toy industry is that there are already some very big, very strong suppliers. And it’s very difficult for a small toy company to get a foot in the door of the big retailers… This is also why many smaller toy companies find it hard to grow beyond a certain level – you need to know the right people to get into the big retailers. That makes it hard to be a leader in that market… That was a very serious answer to the most serious question – but it’s true.

And it’s a brilliant answer. Sebastian, I can’t think of a better way to wrap this up. Thank you so much for making time for us. I think you’ve got an amazing product; I urge people to take a look.

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