Punjab-origin US student develops water-resistant socks
Thursday, 30/07/2015
http://paper.hindustantimes.com/epaper/viewer.aspx
WASHINGTON: A 23-year-old Indian-origin student in the US has developed water-resistant socks and launched a successful kickstarter campaign that blew past its business goal within two days, a media report said.
Jaspreet Singh, a law student at Wayne State University in Detroit, came up with the idea of water-resistant socks in a public speaking class at the University of Michigan where he was supposed to pitch a business idea, The Detroit News reported on Tuesday.
After nearly 18 months, Jaspreet created the 5 Water Socks brand after much research, testing and development. He got a working prototype for hydrophobic athletic socks and launched a successful kickstarter campaign that sought to raise $10,000, but brought in more than $21,300 within two days.
Kickstarter is a US-based global crowd-funding platform. The first of the socks will be produced in a North Carolina facility in August and September and should be shipped out by October, the report said.
The socks developed by the Indian-origin student are breathable and feel like any regular pair of athletic socks, but when they come into contact with liquids, the fibres, which have been fused with waterresistant particles, cause the liquid to bead up and run off.
When submerged, they will get wet, but not as quickly and they will dry faster, he said.
“There are socks that are completely waterproof, but it’s a different market,” he said.
“They aren’t breathable, they don’t feel soft. These are for everyday use.”
The name, 5 Water Socks, is inspired by Punjab as well as Detroit, where he was born. “Five for the Great Lakes and also because Punjab is referred as the land of five rivers,” he said.
