There is a lot of thought in that GripMat
In 2013 my friends and I were running our first Kickstarter for a board game. It was a tile based space game (Disaster Looms!), and I was frustrated that the tiles would be askew so easily on tables, and even play mats. I tried felt, and other materials and just was not happy with what I found.
I decided to develop a double sided Grippy mat. Rubber on the bottom, and a printable grippy top. It took 2 years of development to make it happen. For our first generation mats we also ran a Kickstarter to help fund the production. Our goal was $5,000, we ended up with over $115k. Disaster struck when the US based printer abandoned the commitment to fulfill the orders, and subsequently killed the pathway I had developed to make my specialized mats. Unfortunately the unique surface could only be made by this printer. So... back to the drawing board.
Another 2 years of development led to another solution. This time I developed a path to print outside the US, and to apply the patented coating in the US. This worked great, until the coating production process proved more complex than expected in testing. This led to nearly an entire truckload of mats streaked and rendered less than perfect. This was yet another setback, and one that I would spend some time working to fix.
Three years later, 2020, I finally solved the issue. The newest mats are perfect, and finally delivering on the design I set out to achieve in 2013. I hope that you find enjoyment in using and looking at our mats. I have worked with over a dozen artists from around the globe to design the art, and to create mats that you, your friends, and family will enjoy.
