| Soma | |
| Type: | Private |
| Foundation: | 2012 |
| Location: | San Francisco, California |
| Industry: | Water filtration |
| Products: | Water filters |
| Homepage: | www.drinksoma.com |
Soma is a company that designs water filtration systems.[1] [2] It was founded by Mike Del Ponte, Ido Leffler, Rohan Oza, and Zach Allia in 2012.[3] [4]
Del Ponte received inspiration for Soma while hosting a dinner party.[2] He was too embarrassed to display his plastic water filter on the table. To compound his embarrassment, when he attempted to decant the water into a glass carafe, the lid flew off the pitcher, spilling water onto the floor.[2] While cleaning up the mess, aided by a dinner guest, Ido Leffler (the founder of Yes To, Inc), they hit on the idea to create a water filter.[2] [5]
The new company, Soma, launched a Kickstarter campaign in December 2012.[6] Within the first nine days they had raised over $100,000, which rose to $147,000 by the end of the campaign.
In July 2013, Soma announced a $3.7 million seed round of funding, from investors that included Baseline Ventures, Forerunner Ventures, Lerer Ventures, Collaborative Fund, Cowboy Ventures, Vast Ventures, Mindful Investors, and Tim Ferriss.[7] Soma opened ordering to the public on September 16, 2013.[8]
In November 2017, Soma was acquired by Full Circle Home, a home goods and cleaning supply company.[9] [10]
The Soma water filtration system consists of a glass carafe and a biodegradable water filter.[2] [3] [11] The filters are delivered to customers via a subscription service every two months.[2] [11] The filter was designed by David Beeman, who created the water formulas for Starbucks and Peet's Coffee.[11] Soma has also partnered with to donate clean drinking water to those in need through the sale of every filter.[12]
The New York Times called Soma a "welcome change to the status quo" and Inc. Magazine named Soma one of the "most audacious companies of 2013."[1] [2] [13]