Bluesmart
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
Bluesmart was a smart luggage pioneer founded in 2013 and led by CEO Tomi Pierucci. After a hugely successful 2014 crowdfunding campaign, it sold connected carry-on suitcases packed with GPS tracking, digital locks, built-in weight scales and phone-charging ports. The company raised about $20 million in venture funding and became one of the best-known brands in the smart luggage category before airline battery rules destroyed its market.
02 / Bluesmart FAILURE REASONS
Failure reasons
Bluesmart was killed by regulation. In late 2017 major US airlines announced a ban on smart luggage with non-removable lithium-ion batteries over fire-safety concerns, with the rules taking effect in January 2018 on American, Delta, United, Alaska and Southwest. Bluesmart's integrated batteries were not designed for easy removal, so its flagship products became non-compliant overnight. Sales collapsed as travelers would not buy luggage they could not take on planes, and redesigning the product was too costly for the small company. The airline ban put it in what it called an irreversibly difficult financial and business situation, forcing it to wind down and sell its assets to Travelpro.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Operations ended
The Verge: Bluesmart said it was forced to wind down, unable to continue as an independent entity after the airline battery ban, and sold IP/designs/branding to Travelpro.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN
How the factors connect
- 01
In January 2018 US airlines put into effect a ban on smart luggage with non-removable lithium-ion batteries, making Bluesmart's products non-compliant.
- 02
On May 1, 2018 Bluesmart announced it would wind down operations and sell all of its technology, designs, brands and intellectual property to Travelpro, saying it could not continue as an independent entity.
- 03
The company shuttered all manufacturing and sales, voiding warranties and returns, while keeping its servers and apps online for several months to support existing customers.
- 04
No reliable realized loss figure with clear subject, period and basis has been disclosed; funding raised is not a loss.