I thought this was the best idea in the universe until I saw the looie padlock & key system. Now all I can see ahead of us is a dystopian future where the 1% get to pee in nice bathrooms and the rest of us will have to jump up and down on one leg.
I wasn't sure if this was a joke when I saw the title, as something similar to this was the premise for the "Seinfeld reunion" episode of Curb your Enthusiasm.
> ...George Costanza...made a fortune by devising an iPhone application called the iToilet, which directed the user to the nearest decent public toilet anywhere in the world
However, private restrooms like proposed here don't sound like too bad an idea! I suspect there will some people who will be willing to pay for them. :-)
Countries like India very badly need something like this. I grew up there, and back then -- and I am told not much has changed since then -- public restrooms were far and few between. Even the ones that existed were so unhygenic and dirty, I would torture myself and try to "hold everything in" till I could get home or to a friend's place.
I would definitely pay for something like this if I were in India and they had it there.
It's funny because I've seen paid toilets in rural Indian towns since almost a decade ago.
But it made no difference to toilet quality because they would just pocket the money and service the toilet as little as they possibly could.
Where we stayed it was pretty much a social norm to stray onto someone's farmland, take a dump in a nice spot then do the awkward walk till you find the nearest water source.
I think the problem they will run into is in expansion. If I need to go, I need one closer to me asap. I hope they partner with local businesses and incentivize them to keep restrooms clean and tidy.
Countries like India could really benefit from it. I always imagined a lock like Lockitron with a subscription based app to unlock clean bathrooms nearby. Leave reviews. I think this would become something funny and useful.
Great idea but please change the splash image. I get that she's disgusted but I would rather see what I like (clean bathroom) than what I don't like (lady that probably stepped in something awful).
I created a similar app a while back called Clnli. The idea was to create a network of bathrooms by partnering with restaurants, small shops, etc. that already do a good job of keeping their bathrooms clean (Starbucks, froyo places, hat stores, etc).
Users would pay a weekly/monthly/yearly fee (non-renewing, good for travel) to get access to the network and they would be able to unlock bathrooms directly from their phones. No need to ask for a key.
Stores would get paid on a monthly basis for keeping their bathrooms clean.
The primary problem was convincing stores to join the network. I talked to a very very large number of store owners and managers in and around downtown San Diego. The value proposition to the store owners just didn't seem high enough. The idea of charging people to use bathrooms didn't sit well with some owners, and others flat out refused to open their bathrooms.
My starting market was parents with young kids. That market seemed quite receptive to the idea.
I hope Looie is able to pull it off. I still think its a great idea.
EDIT: Having to use a separate access key seems meh, when we all have cell phones. Clnli integrated with lock systems like http://resortlock.com/ and displayed a code in app. Using BLE/NFC would have been even cooler.
It's an interesting concept, but I don't get the need to have a physical device.
You're catering to people who are looking to distance themselves from the reality of bodily function by finding them what you describe as the 'cleanest restooms' (bit of a misspell in the copy, by the way) but also expect them to carry a non-discrete keyfob everywhere they go, that through your label and it's purpose they will associate only with excrement.
I'm just an armchair social psychologist but I feel like your branding should be far more discrete. The branding should be associated with cleanliness, not a euphemism for toilet, which conjures unclean mental imagery.
Use NFC on a phone, or RFID on a card that can be placed in the wallet and a name like (here's my best marketing consultant impression) 'Pristn' to give a more positive image when your name is read. You will not disrupt people's shame in their bodies, unfortunately.
I think it's just a matter of time before we go through every possible permutation of integrating thing x into the sharing economy.
As someone mentioned, maybe for the third world this would work... otherwise, it is, of course absurd, as well as an actual idea of George Costanza as someone pointed out. I'd pivot this for the third world if you want something more feasible.
Lots of interesting points. In NYC there's a dilapidated restroom infrastructure for the city's 10 million inhabitants and 50 million annual tourists- Looie gives them a clean, safe and comfortable alternative.
For the keyfob thing most people don't get, it's for two reasons. We're going to be in everyone's keychain - which is an awesome place to be. We'll also be there when your phone is dead - just in case.
DKnoll, good points on branding. Looie is a character - kind of like Oscar (health insurance) or Casper (mattresses). We hope it's a brand name that our users will grow fond of. One day we hope people will be asking for the "Looie" instead of restroom. The term is also more light-hearted than "restroom" and more accurate than "bathroom". Going to the looie doesn't have any of the negative associations that weigh down the existing terminology.
@VQC - really cool stuff. We had to get our hands dirty and demonstrate to businesses our value add. Now we're at the point where they tangibly understand what hosting a Looie does for their business.
As for pay toilets being illegal - it's an incredible history of why things are the way they are. Here in NYC, the Municipality has only introduced three pay toilets in the last 9 years or so. It's a serious public health issue in the city - that's why we're working like animals to fix it.
20 comments
[ 4.1 ms ] story [ 52.7 ms ] thread> ...George Costanza...made a fortune by devising an iPhone application called the iToilet, which directed the user to the nearest decent public toilet anywhere in the world
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seinfeld_%28Curb_Your_Enthusia...
However, private restrooms like proposed here don't sound like too bad an idea! I suspect there will some people who will be willing to pay for them. :-)
I would definitely pay for something like this if I were in India and they had it there.
Especially for tourists, it's SO worth paying for. It's a matter of staying well on a trip you've already paid thousands of bucks for.
Don't hesitate to charge.
EDIT: I see you're not hesitating to charge. Excellent!
It's funny because I've seen paid toilets in rural Indian towns since almost a decade ago. But it made no difference to toilet quality because they would just pocket the money and service the toilet as little as they possibly could.
Where we stayed it was pretty much a social norm to stray onto someone's farmland, take a dump in a nice spot then do the awkward walk till you find the nearest water source.
Countries like India could really benefit from it. I always imagined a lock like Lockitron with a subscription based app to unlock clean bathrooms nearby. Leave reviews. I think this would become something funny and useful.
Though it was more like Foursquare/Yelp reviewing for public restrooms rather than paying to use private ones.
We ended up targeting handicapped people as a market who had an actual legitimate problem which we could help to solve.
Users would pay a weekly/monthly/yearly fee (non-renewing, good for travel) to get access to the network and they would be able to unlock bathrooms directly from their phones. No need to ask for a key.
Stores would get paid on a monthly basis for keeping their bathrooms clean.
The primary problem was convincing stores to join the network. I talked to a very very large number of store owners and managers in and around downtown San Diego. The value proposition to the store owners just didn't seem high enough. The idea of charging people to use bathrooms didn't sit well with some owners, and others flat out refused to open their bathrooms.
My starting market was parents with young kids. That market seemed quite receptive to the idea.
I hope Looie is able to pull it off. I still think its a great idea.
EDIT: Having to use a separate access key seems meh, when we all have cell phones. Clnli integrated with lock systems like http://resortlock.com/ and displayed a code in app. Using BLE/NFC would have been even cooler.
[1] http://thenextweb.com/apps/2014/03/04/airpnp-its-like-airbnb...
You're catering to people who are looking to distance themselves from the reality of bodily function by finding them what you describe as the 'cleanest restooms' (bit of a misspell in the copy, by the way) but also expect them to carry a non-discrete keyfob everywhere they go, that through your label and it's purpose they will associate only with excrement.
I'm just an armchair social psychologist but I feel like your branding should be far more discrete. The branding should be associated with cleanliness, not a euphemism for toilet, which conjures unclean mental imagery.
Use NFC on a phone, or RFID on a card that can be placed in the wallet and a name like (here's my best marketing consultant impression) 'Pristn' to give a more positive image when your name is read. You will not disrupt people's shame in their bodies, unfortunately.
As someone mentioned, maybe for the third world this would work... otherwise, it is, of course absurd, as well as an actual idea of George Costanza as someone pointed out. I'd pivot this for the third world if you want something more feasible.
Lots of interesting points. In NYC there's a dilapidated restroom infrastructure for the city's 10 million inhabitants and 50 million annual tourists- Looie gives them a clean, safe and comfortable alternative.
For the keyfob thing most people don't get, it's for two reasons. We're going to be in everyone's keychain - which is an awesome place to be. We'll also be there when your phone is dead - just in case.
DKnoll, good points on branding. Looie is a character - kind of like Oscar (health insurance) or Casper (mattresses). We hope it's a brand name that our users will grow fond of. One day we hope people will be asking for the "Looie" instead of restroom. The term is also more light-hearted than "restroom" and more accurate than "bathroom". Going to the looie doesn't have any of the negative associations that weigh down the existing terminology.
@VQC - really cool stuff. We had to get our hands dirty and demonstrate to businesses our value add. Now we're at the point where they tangibly understand what hosting a Looie does for their business.
As for pay toilets being illegal - it's an incredible history of why things are the way they are. Here in NYC, the Municipality has only introduced three pay toilets in the last 9 years or so. It's a serious public health issue in the city - that's why we're working like animals to fix it.
Cool stuff.