Most companies say they listen to customers. Anthony Katz, co-founder of Hyperice — the recovery technology company now used by elite athletes and teams around the world — built his business because he didn’t initially know what to do with the feedback.
Before Hyperice became a staple on team sidelines and inside training rooms, Katz made a device for use after playing basketball.
“I had made a really simple… two-part device with a compression sleeve and an ice bag,” Katz shared in a recent interview with Inc.
It wasn’t a product or a business. It was something to soothe his knees.
Then a friend asked for one. That friend happened to be connected to Kobe Bryant. Katz handed it off. Two weeks later, his phone rang.
“He said, ‘I like this, but I don’t like this,’” Katz recalled Bryant’s insights. “‘The bag only covers this. It’s gotta be bigger. Can you make it square?”
The feedback wasn’t subtle. It was specific, direct, and demanding. Katz didn’t know what to do with it. He had just made it so his body felt better after playing pick-up.
