X Shore electric boats wins 2 awards for design and tech

Quite a week! X Shore electric boats has added to their awards and trophy case with the announcements that they have won both the Peoples’ Choice Award in the Swedish Design Festival  and made the The Red Herring Top 100 winners list for most exciting startups in Europe.

In addition to the People’s Choice award, X Shore also received the jury’s ‘Honourary Vote’.

This award winning is becoming a bit of a habit for X Shore. Last year they won the German Design Award and their website was nominated for a ‘Webby‘ internet award in the ‘Best User Interface’ category.

It is no surprise that the striking silhouette and intriguing detailing of the X Shore electric boats attract admiration in the world of design. The boats were modeled on the sleek, streamlined body and robust head of the South American Electric Eel nd merged with the clean, minimalist lines of Scandinavian design. The maidenhead is from ‘The Power of Silence’ project, drawn by cult tattoo artist William Pacheco and sculptured by Johan Ferner Ström.

The Red Herring Top 100 award goes beyond design, however. Red Herring is a global media company whose annual Top 100 highlights the most exciting startups from Europe, Asia and the Americas. Some of the companies that have made the list in the past are Alibaba, Facebook, Google, SalesForce, Skype, SuperCell, Spotify, Twitter, and YouTube.

X Shore electric boats ‘like a smartphone’

So what’s a boat company doing in there?

For one thing, X Shore electric boats founder and President Konrad Bergström had success in the broader technology world before setting out to convert the world to the benefits of electric boating. He was one of the founders of Zound, the company that brought the world Urbanears and Marshall headphones.

Speaking about the overall concept behind X Shore (see video below), Bergström says “We don’t see the Eelex as a boat, we see it more as a computer or smartphone where everything works together.”

Being recognized in both awards competitions is testament to success in that regard. The Swedish Grand Award of Design was first established in 2003 by the Association of Swedish Engineering Industries to ‘celebrate business successes that are embedded in an integrated and consistent design work’.

For the Red Herring list, there is a  rigorous 3-step process that looks at all aspects of the nominated company, using more than 20 criteria. All companies submit a thorough report to the judges, a senior Red Herring representative validates the data and short-listed competitors are asked to be part of a live presentation at the appropriate regional Top 100 event.

Commenting on the award, Bergström says “It’s fantastic to see X Shore recognised for our innovative design and as a high-potential business, both in the same week! These are aspects we have been working long and hard on and we’re immensely proud about both awards.”

“As someone who’s spent most of my career designing products that are loved by the people, it is particularly heartwarming to have had our fans come together to vote for X Shore’s design to win the People’s Choice award. And following in the footsteps of the likes of Spotify and Skype to be named one of Europe’s most promising private companies by Red Herring is not bad either!”