USA MAY BECOME TOP FOR HEDGEHOG

He is the founder and owner of the Norwegian company, which has become known at home for its shoe dryers.

– It all started with an acute need that arose when I discovered how difficult it was to dry the shoes of our three children. The solutions on the market took three to six hours, and we thought that was far too long. The shoe dryers we developed take 15 to 20 minutes for damp shoes, says Holte to the trade magazine Elektronikkbransjen.

We meet him in January, during the CES fair in Las Vegas.

– The USA is about to become the company's most important market, after Canada and Norway, says Holte.

When the shoe drying problem arose, Holte started developing a new drying technology together with engineers from the Waterpower Laboratory at NTNU, who contributed turbine technology adapted to airflow and performance.

Hedgehog AS has its main address at Holte's home with his wife Erin Eriksson in Hemsedal, and also branches in the USA, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, with around 15 employees spread across approximately 12 countries. Last year's turnover was just under 50 million kroner.

Prize at Time Magazine

– We have 11 patents, and in addition over 50 patent applications pending, and this is an important part of our business, says Holte.

At CES, he is showcasing Hedgehog Go, a combined hairdryer and shoe dryer, which has recently been launched in Norway. It consists of a cylindrical motor unit, which can be used as a hairdryer or leaf blower, and a splitter that distributes the air to two shoes.

– Hedgehog Go was developed in response to feedback from the market, including the snowboarding community, who wanted a small, powerful product. We tested it on Kickstarter, and it received five times the response of our traditional dryer. It has been named innovation of the year by Time Magazine, and we believe this will be our best-selling model, says Holte, to the trade magazine Elektronikkbransjen.

The model is available for purchase and costs NOK 1,500.

– It has a more powerful motor than the model from a very well-known brand, which costs around 5,000 kroner. We have won all the performance tests we have conducted, and it is incredibly fun that a small company in Norway beats large companies with enormous engineering capacity, says Holte.

Among the five largest

He says Hedgehog builds all motor technology themselves.

– We use engineers from the Hydropower Laboratory at NTNU in Trondheim, Magne Bolstad and Erik Volent. They utilised technology from impellers and turbine wheels, and we built the entire motor from scratch. Therefore, the performance is far better than those who buy third-party motors, says Holte.

He says the design must show that the products are unique.

– When we tested a small vacuum cleaner with our motor and kept the shelf design, people thought it was as poor as cheap models. Therefore, we must develop everything ourselves, says Holte to the trade magazine Elektronikkbransjen.

The company is also working towards new markets.

– Our products are already used in the rescue service and are now being tested for warming patients in rescue helicopters. We are collaborating with a larger company on the development of thermal bags for people who end up in the sea or avalanche accidents, says Holte.

He is extremely pleased with the response during the CES fair.

– We were here last year with two people, and this year we are also trying to be in as many places as possible during the fair. The essential thing is to create as many meeting points as possible, and that is part of the reason why we are now in with the five largest chains in the world, says Holte.