LUUV Forward

LUUV Forward GmbH was a German startup that specialized in camera stabilization systems for both amateur and professional filmmakers. Founded in Berlin in 2012 by Felix Kochbeck, Tim Kirchner, and Friedrich M.Hohensee, the company originated from the founders' desire to create a simple, effective stabilizer for capturing their own snowboarding and other action sports footage. The founders' backgrounds blended technical expertise and design, with Kochbeck having a history in engineering and Kirchner in communication design. This combination fueled the development of a product designed to be user-friendly without requiring extensive technical knowledge.

The company's initial product, the solidLUUV, was a mechanical stabilizer based on Steadicam technology, designed for one-handed operation with small cameras like GoPros and smartphones. Its key feature was a "plug and play" system, allowing users to set it up once for a specific camera and use it repeatedly without recalibration, a significant time-saver compared to other systems. To expand its offerings, LUUV later introduced the ultraLUUV, which combined the mechanical solidLUUV with an electronic 3-axis gimbal, the Action Gimbal, developed in partnership with FeiyuTech. This created what the company termed the world's first 2x3-axis stabilizer, offering both mechanical and electronic stabilization.

LUUV Forward's business model focused on direct-to-consumer sales through its own webshop and Amazon, supplemented by retail partnerships with established dealers like Conrad Electronics. The company gained initial traction and funding through two successful crowdfunding campaigns on Indiegogo and Kickstarter, which helped validate the market and finance the first production runs. These campaigns raised significant pre-orders from over 60 countries. Despite these early successes, LUUV Forward GmbH faced challenges in establishing a hardware brand in a competitive market dominated by Chinese manufacturers. The company filed for insolvency and was acquired in an asset deal by Growsolid in March 2019. The original founders departed, and the new owner pivoted the business away from in-house product development to an e-commerce shop selling products from established brands like DJI. Keywords: camera stabilizer, gimbal, filmmaking equipment, video stabilization, GoPro accessories, smartphone stabilizer, action camera gear, mechanical stabilizer, electronic gimbal, crowdfunding hardware, Kickstarter startup, Indiegogo project, Felix Kochbeck, Tim Kirchner, solidLUUV, ultraLUUV, video equipment, camera gear, film accessories, Steadicam technology