Simplehuman
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2000 |
| Founder | Frank Yang |
| Headquarters | Torrance, California, U.S. |
Key people | Frank Yang (CEO and founder) |
| Products |
|
Number of employees | ~100 |
| Website | simplehuman |
Simplehuman is a privately owned designer and manufacturer of kitchen,[1] bath, and beauty tools based in Torrance, California. Simplehuman's trash cans, touch-free soap pumps, shower caddies, and magnified sensor-activated vanity mirrors are sold across the US and internationally both on its website and at various brick-and-mortar retail chains such as Bed Bath & Beyond, The Container Store, Crate & Barrel, Nordstrom, and Neiman Marcus.
History
[edit]In 2000, Simplehuman was founded by Frank Yang, who immigrated to the United States from Taiwan in 1982[2][3] and later started the company with the idea of making a better trash can.[1][4] He showed his design and received his first orders at the International Home and Housewares Show from retailers such as The Container Store and Bed Bath & Beyond.[5] The company was originally called Canworks due to its focus on trash cans, but Yang changed the name to Simplehuman in 2001 when the company began to broaden its product line into other kitchen and bath tools, under the tagline “Tools for Efficient Living”.[5][6] In 2003, Simplehuman opened a UK subsidiary in Oxfordshire, England to serve the European market.[7]
Simplehuman introduced its sensor soap pump in 2007. In 2010, it came out with the first of its line of motion-sensor-activated trash cans. In 2013, the company took this sensor technology into the beauty tools market with the introduction of its first sensor-activated vanity mirror that uses LED light technology.[8]
Awards
[edit]- The Housewares Design Award in 2013 for the semi-round sensor can[9]
- The European Consumer Choice Awards in 2011 for the steel frame dishrack[10]
- The European Consumer Choice Awards in 2012 for the butterfly sensor can[11]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Lowly trash can gets respect at Frank Yang's simplehuman – USATODAY.com". usatoday30.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
- ^ https://fortune.com/2016/06/28/simplehuman-houseware-frank-yang/
- ^ "simplehuman – Frank Yang". theofficeproject.com. 2015-02-17. Archived from the original on March 15, 2014. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
- ^ "Simplehuman, LLC: Private Company Information – Businessweek". investing.businessweek.com. Archived from the original on November 17, 2009. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
- ^ a b "Simplehuman Founder Frank Yang on Reinventing the Trash Can". Open Forum. 2012-04-02. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
- ^ Hamilton, William L. (2004-07-29). "Design Notebook; Trash Trades Up". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
- ^ "Simplehuman (UK) Limited, RG8 9AQ Goring on Thames Financial Information". CompaniesInTheUK. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
- ^ "Man in the Mirror: SimpleHuman's Sensor Mirror". Design Bureau. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
- ^ "HousewaresDesignAwards.com: Simplehuman Simplehuman Semi-Round Sensor Can". www.housewaresdesignawards.com. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
- ^ "Steel frame dishrack – Test and reviews – European Consumers Choice". www.europeanconsumerschoice.org. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
- ^ "Butterfly sensor can – Test and reviews – European Consumers Choice". www.europeanconsumerschoice.org. Retrieved 2016-05-21.