We at PITAKA realized the necessity to release one more official statement before we can really get an expected apology from Unbox Therapy.
TLDR: This is a breakdown of who we are, and of the situation that recently unfolded regarding the new phone case which Unbox Therapy claims to have designed.
Who are we?
PITAKA is comprised of a team of materials experts, engineers and designers. We got the idea of building our aramid cases about 5 years ago. We got our inspiration from Motorola phones, which were using the same materials for their phones.
In the images below, you can see the cases we built for iPhone 5:
It was difficult to market an aramid case at that time. The cost to do so was high for most first generation products. We took some OEM business for the sake of survival before we really set up the brand to market it. But we invested a lot to improve the technology and cut the costs by growing the efficiency, including developing a various of patterns and colors, improving cutouts designing for best button accesses, adjusting the coating & impregnation percentage for a 3D-grip etc.
Here are some additional cases with different patterns, which we also made a few years ago:
Some information of the 3D-grip is here: https://www.ipitaka.com/pages/3d-grip
During this early stage, we went to multiple exhibitions worldwide with the goal to search for cooperation opportunities:
PITAKA at CES2019, IFA2019, HongKong HKTDC 2019 and HKTDC 2014
Over time, sales grew, albeit slowly. We got one of our largest boosts from our MagEZ series, which is an eco-system providing a seamless experience:
Here’s a look at some of our products from the MagEZ series:
Over time, we realized that influencer marketing generated the best results for us. We searched for the most respected reviewers across the Internet, and sent them emails asking if they might be interested in reviewing our cases.
Naturally, when top reviewers featured PITAKA products, it boosts our sales. Some of these, included our respected EverythingApple Pro, and yes, Unbox Therapy. Like most other brands, we shipped our products to respected reviewers each year, with each new release, and the reviews have always been favorable.
What happened?
A few days ago, we saw this photo published from Unbox Therapy. We thought it was an entirely organic review for PITAKA, because we did ship out these cases to his address.
Here’s our recent package shipping details to Unbox Therapy;
The cases on the photo looked quite identical to our cases. We were thrilled, since he is one of the biggest names on our list.
But after two days of waiting, we were shocked to learn that Lewis was in their promotional video showing a case very similar to our design, while stating that he made that as his own.
We were in utter disbelief. Our team members were all frustrated, disappointed and angry. We decided to release at least one statement, even though we were suddenly up against someone who is so powerful and followed by over 15.8 million subscribers, while we are just a small company. Our CEO, James Zheng, then launched a giveaway campaign in an effort to further spread the message. As the hours, then days went on, we were comforted to see that many of our supporters, customers, tech influencers, and upstanding Unbox Therapy fans, stood up for us and were on our side.
To Conclude:
- We designed & engineered our own cases
- Most of the Latercase in the video (Don't Ruin Your Smartphone - https://youtu.be/s0wKAHQI8XU) looks nearly identical to the PITAKA ones;
- Unbox Therapy said he designed those cases in the video: “I don’t like phone cases so I went out and made one”.
This is the whole story.
What do we want?
Simple. We hope to get a sincere and official apology from Unbox Therapy. Surely he can only sell his cases after applying some modifications out of respect to the originals. It would be the most ethical route to take, as people would not again misleadingly believe he created the case.
Some facts:
- Is that a general case design that everybody can use?
No. All of the designs, particularly the 3D-grippy coating, cutouts and camera ring, were made by our own team of designers and engineers. There had been many copycats or leakage from our suppliers since we built our first case, and we didn't care about them, but that doesn't mean they were ever legal or ethical.
- But can’t we find a lot of cases look similar on Amazon or Alibaba?
Yes, you can. You can even buy an iPhone from Alibaba or TaoBao in China. But once again, it doesn't mean they are the original, and it doesn't mean they are legal or ethical. Not to mention, many of them were made from plastic with aramid fiber patterns printed on.
- Can anyone use the same material to build up phone cases?
Surely, yes! Anyone can make cases from aramid fiber. But you have to make it your own design. Like what OnePlus or EverythingApp Pro did.
- What was shipped to Unbox Therapy?
We shipped him our latest invention, the Air Case, which upgrades minimalist cases by taking them to the next level.
We still welcome any professional reviewers who would be interested in reviewing them. We also welcome anyone to visit our office and manufacturing facilities for further analysis and verification if needed.
Once again, PITAKA means more than a case, it is a magnetic ecosystem that provides a seamless experience with a unique lifestyle. When you buying a MagEZ case, it means not only a minimalism phone case, genuine aramid fiber, more reliable quality service etc, you will also benefit from a transit-free system for your daily routines. We do believe all users would make a sense choice and find their perfect cases. Once again, thanks to all PITAKA supporters. It’s you who inspire us to keep moving forward.