About Cinch
A beer. Some boots. And an idea that wouldn’t quit.
I started Cinch because I wanted one simple thing:
A Pop-Up Tent With A Porch.
At the time, I was going to loads of festivals. I loved the idea of a pop-up, nothing quicker, nothing easier. But they were all crap. I just wanted a bit more.
Somewhere to throw my muddy boots and leave my beer without waking up surrounded by empty cans and soggy socks.
At the time, I was working with manufacturers in the clothing industry and had a background in fashion. So I thought — why not? I sourced a manufacturer, got a sample made up — just for myself. Took it to one festival. Everyone wanted one.
So I borrowed a bit of cash from my lovely mum (cheers, Mum), got a few made, and the plan was simple: sell a few, prove the concept, raise some investment, and launch Cinch.
300 units later — listed on eBay — they flew out. Rave reviews. But this was 2009, right in the middle of the financial crash, and banks weren’t exactly lending to 28-year-old festival-goers with no money and a garage full of tents.
So I kept the hustle going on eBay. It wasn’t easy — seasonal stock, long delivery times, no capital. I even moved back into my mum’s garage to keep costs down. Honestly, might’ve been more comfortable in one of the tents.
Things got a bit stuck. I couldn’t scale, I couldn’t get investment. It was a grind.
Then, In 2015, I Discovered Crowdfunding — And It Changed Everything.
You could bring an idea to life with the backing of real people — a crowd — who wanted to support something new, something exciting.
I launched our first campaign (with no clue what I was doing). It was a huge success. People backed me, the product, the dream — and it was genuinely humbling.
No bank loans. No investors. Just a great idea, a bunch of brilliant humans, and a lot of hustle.
Since then, that’s been the Cinch model:
Build game-changing products. Launch with our crowd. Scale up from there.
It’s created an amazing community. I’m on first-name terms with loads of our customers — some who bought from that first eBay batch (cheers, Steve), and our very first Kickstarter backer (thanks, Gabe). Our customers are now a massive part of our R&D — big shout-out to Anne.
The journey’s been wild. Huge ups, some big downs. Covid wiped us out. A faulty manufacturing run in 2019 nearly finished us off. But we’re still here, still creating products we believe in.
It’s still a hustle — but one we love.
We’re a small, family-run business. It’s mainly me and my brother-in-law Ben, supported by a great team of freelancers, third-party warehouses, and partners from Morecambe to Mauritius. We’re a US company, based in the UK, and now ship to thousands of customers in over 80 countries.
What started in my mum’s garage — by a young festival-goer who just wanted a better tent — has turned into something far bigger than I ever imagined.
These days, I’m a dad of four-year-old twins, married, knee-deep in a house renovation, and occasionally miss the peace and quiet of that garage. But I wouldn’t change a thing.
Thank you.
Jake, Cinch Founder