Before MCO, my colleagues and I invested a considerable amount of money by increasing the working spaces of our offices so that they could be more ergonomic, prompted by my case of carpal tunnel syndrome. Our upgrades ranged from affordable laptop stands to mice and external keyboards.
The most expensive purchase came from a video producer Secretlab a toy chair, a rough seat with a Batman theme in the amount of RM1,500 which he used shortly before we headed into full WFH.
Before founding a local gaming chair brand, Henry himself was an avid gamer, observing the ergonomic chair.
“I believe that most people spend much longer time in their seats than anything else in their daily activities (including me). And that’s a problem because there are very few possibilities of what you can find to satisfy all your personal sweet spots (price, features, aesthetics, upholstery, etc.), ”he noted.
With an initial capital of 80,000 to 100,000 RM, he started TTRacing In 2017, as a brand of gaming chairs made in Malaysia, originally from Ipoh.
Comfort does not mean breaking the bank
To make toy chairs more accessible to Malaysians, TTRacing prices its products from RM399 to RM1,000. It is slightly cheaper than Coltrine, another local gaming chair company that sells its chairs at a price of RM1,350-RM1,550, although it is worth noting that Coltrine’s chairs are fabric.
Shipping for TTRacing products is free for those living in the Malaysian Peninsula, and shipping fees start at RM139 for those in East Malaysia and Singapore.
As a vertically challenging individual, trying out my colleague’s Batman chair didn’t suit me. His neck and lumbar support as well as the height of the chair were simply not satisfied with my stature. Admittedly, my colleague’s chair bought it according to my own making, not mine, but she stressed the importance of getting something that fits.
For this purpose, different models of TTRacing chairs have different sizes. Each of their measurements is transparently displayed so that customers can make informed decisions.
When creating the new model, the team will first make a prototype from raw materials, including foam, steel frames, upholstery, plywood and others for the interior and structure of the chair. Through a lengthy but vital process, the prototypes are then put to various tests to determine if they meet the team’s expectations.
“Usually at least 20 prototypes will be made, sometimes up to 50 if there are certain parts we need just to be perfect,” Henry elaborated. “After that, a few will be selected to pass a few more rounds of vigorous tests before the first MVP is confirmed, if not, they will return to step 1.”
All the tests paid off
With the widespread adoption of WFH since March 2020, Malaysians are making their home workspaces more adequate.
Such demands are also reflected in the growth of TTRacing, which indicated that its B2C segment accounts for the majority of the company’s revenue. Customers are mostly young adults aged 20 to 36 who spend long hours in front of their computer.
Because our expertise is in ergonomics that will generally benefit anyone sitting for longer hours, we’ve expanded our targeting closer to the mass market to reach those who aren’t actually from the “toy” audience group, but would equally appreciate the benefits of our products to improve their performance. efficiency and performance.
Henry Ting, founder of TTRacing
Henry added that B2B projects also grew at a significant pace during the pandemic. “We have worked with many MNCs during the pandemic to equip their employees with TTRacing chairs to be as efficient as possible while working from home,” he shared.
“In addition, there are many offices that want to create a livelier environment for employees’ workspaces to use TTRacing chairs to encourage innovation and creativity, while also becoming a factor in attracting talent.”
To date, TTRacing has sold about 300,000 units of its gaming chairs, and average monthly sales have increased, with the team selling about 15,000 TTRacing chairs per month, thanks to their mix of B2B and B2C transactions.
The gaming chair company has since found fans in the Philippines through distributors, and Henry wants to expand it to other SEA countries, the US and Europe. He hopes to get there by setting up a new factory production line by October 2021 and expanding his team from 20 to 50 employees by mid-2022.
But even as they expand, TTRacing intends to keep the brand’s headquarters in Malaysia, where the company’s key functions will be centralized.
If TTRacing delimits and offers non-toy chairs, not only will it compete with the already popular brand Secretlab in the gaming chair industry, but it will have to face many of the available options for work chairs.
For example, if we are talking about local ergonomic brands of office chairs, one that comes to mind would be Alterseat, which we have covered before. Compared to the total price range of TTRacing, Alterseat chairs can cost as much as 199.90 RM.
Therefore, in order to scale, TTRacing should truly understand the market it wants to target and offer solutions that have not already been met by other players. It would be exciting to see what strategies the Ipoh-based brand would use to address the space and what the outcome would be.
Credits for featured images: TTRacing
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