By: Bryan Laughery
When Donovan Stewart was in Qatar, he got a much closer look at a problem that affects everyone in the world: dehydration. Even in the more privileged countries, the ones where the citizens are fortunate enough to know that they have clean drinking water nearby or even at home, see massive amounts of dehydration. Donovan was serving in the Air Force when he was in Qatar, and he saw firsthand the effects of heat exhaustion. It didn’t introduce him to the complexities of hydration, but it was an integral part of his business model, which helps people around the world get hydrated. Donovan and fellow service members Johnathan Nokes and Fernando Villa started working on the Ghydion Gallon—a smart water bottle with a patented intake calculator—to change the hydration industry for the better.
Ghydion is a veteran-owned company. The founding team brings with them the discipline and coordination of 100 people, and they’ve set their minds on helping rid the world of dehydration. In the US, it’s estimated that most people face chronic dehydration. For most of these people, hydration is a chore on top of their already busy lives; they collect plastic water bottles like dust, each growing more gnarled and moldy than the last, and then they treat their hydration like a hurdle. The Ghydion Gallon smart bottle has an advanced tracking method—it boasts an internally chargeable water intake calculator with a display that shows both your goal and your progress. In addition, the bottle pairs with an app to track your progress, share your results, and plan workouts. The most unique feature of the app is a lock-out option that restricts your access to your favorite apps and social media until your hydration goal is met.
Donovan’s philosophy is psychological; he believes in long-term behavioral restructuring through intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation, while coming from oneself, is boosted by external factors. One great example of the Ghydion Gallon being a smart bottle is its use of both positive and negative motivators to fit a broad audience. It motivates positively with its tracking display, custom sleeve design, and many attachments, while the lock-out feature is an optional negative motivator that forces you to reach your goal. Either way, the bottle is designed to bring your goals to you!
When you hydrate properly, you see immediate benefits. For one, your headaches and nausea will slow or stop. Your sleep gets better, and your body can more readily recover. All of your organs function better, like your skin, liver, and kidneys; so your body will literally function more and better. The benefits to hydration are a win for employers and employees, parents and children, teachers and students. Donovan expanded his reach with a philanthropic partnership because of these benefits.
Ghydion is partnered with Charity: Water, a nonprofit that brings water around the globe. To prove it, they put coordinates, photos, and a map description whenever they bring water to a country in a water crisis. Donovan’s team made the decision to donate 10% of every gallon they sell to Charity: Water. The decision is precisely in line with their business model: to bring hydration to as many people as they can.
Beyond its patented method of the intake calculator, the Ghydion Gallon is a smart water bottle that shows how well the ownership team has responded to customer suggestions. One such suggestion was broadening the types of bottles they offer; in response, Donovan brought the hiking water bottle onto his prototype campaign. Every Ghydion bottle has multiple design options, and its external sleeve—capable of holding your wallet, ID, and keys—comes in many colors and patterns. The team is eternally thankful to their Ghydion community for their suggestions and for catapulting fundraising to $20,000 in the first three hours of the campaign.
The external charging capacity of this smart water bottle allows users to charge their electronics with the Ghydion Gallon. Additionally, the custom shutter pod can be filled with supplements or flavor infusions, and those will stay dry until the user wants to integrate their drink with them. The bottle is stainless steel, and its dual lid remains vacuum-sealed when not in use. This futuristic smart bottle is the ideal gym buddy, even though it can’t spot you on the bench press yet.
Donovan beat out 80 other entrepreneurs to win “best startup” on season 12 of The Blox, a competition show for business owners. Between his victory on the show and how far he surpassed his $5,000 fundraising goal for the Ghydion Gallon prototype release, Donovan is rising up and changing the hydration industry for the better. If you want to see how gamified hydration helps everyone, make yourself a part of the Ghydion community!
Published by: Martin De Juan
