Thousandshores is ‘building brands for the long-haul, not quick wins’

Thousandshores is the ecommerce business behind fan-favourite art pens Ohuhu, bluetooth speaker brand Tribit, iClever headphones for young children, and Sportneer fitness equipment. And Eric He is the man behind that company. One of his guiding principles is to manage with ‘global long-termism’ – we ask what this means to him, how he puts it […]

Transcript

Thousandshores is the ecommerce business behind fan-favourite art pens Ohuhu, bluetooth speaker brand Tribit, iClever headphones for young children, and Sportneer fitness equipment. And Eric He is the man behind that company. One of his guiding principles is to manage with ‘global long-termism’ – we ask what this means to him, how he puts it into practice with his brands, and what it suggests about the future of the company as it targets greater European growth.

European CEO: Eric, you say that one of your guiding principles is managing with global long-termism – what does this mean to you, and where does this conviction come from?

Eric He: Well, long-termism means we build brands for the long haul, not quick wins. It’s about investing in relationships with customers and employees, listening continuously, and improving products over time.

This conviction comes from our own experience: we put in a lot of long term efforts to our brands, and we saw that steady, customer first growth pays off. We believe success is not about a short term advertising spend, but about earning loyalty through genuine connection and quality.

European CEO: Give me an example of this in practice; how have you put long-termism to work in Ohuhu?

Eric He: A clear example is how we responded to customer feedback. They wanted a brush nib, so we developed the Honolulu series—and the first 3,000 pieces sold out in just two hours.

We also kept adding more colours because customers kept asking; today we offer the widest range of colours in the market.

We maintain ongoing dialogue through social media and formal surveys, collecting thousands of responses to guide our decisions. This long term commitment to listening and iterating has made Ohuhu the number one brand in its category.

European CEO: Looking ahead, what’s your vision for the future? And how will long-termism help your other brands – and Thousandshores as a whole – succeed?

Eric He: Our vision is to apply the same long term approach to iClever, Tribit, and Sportneer – building fan communities, listening, and iterating.

AI will help us analyse data faster, and people who can harness AI will remain the most valuable asset.

We willl follow the same game plan: start on Amazon, grow through organic word of mouth, and eventually expand to brick and mortar stores, just as Ohuhu has done.

Our next goal is to make iClever number one on Amazon within a year, and we are confident that our long term thinking will drive sustainable success through all brands.

Watch more with Eric He, explaining how Thousandshores turns its customers into loyal fans.