Secretlab
Secretlab is a Singaporean furniture company established by Ian Ang and Alaric Choo in 2014. It primarily designs and manufactures gaming chairs. History. Secretlab was founded as a startup company in December 2014 by former professional esports players Ian Alexander Ang and Alaric Choo, both of whom specialised in "StarCraft II". Its starting capital, which came from the two founders' savings, was S$50,000, and went mostly into research and development. The company's first product was a gaming chair, the Secretlab Throne V1, that was launched in March 2015. Two more chairs, the Throne V2 and the Omega, were  released in October 2015. In 2020, the company sold its millionth chair. In 2020 and 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, demand for the company's chairs rose greatly, in part due to office workers who had to work from home. Facilities and partners. The company operates its corporate headquarters, a research and development facility, and an esports gaming arena in Braddell, Singapore. It also has a factory in China. The company has partnered multiple times with organisers of official esports tournaments, where the partnership involves Secretlab providing chairs for the players. In partnership with HBO, it introduced Game of  Thrones-themed gaming chairs. Sales and finances. In August 2019, Heliconia Capital Management, a subsidiary of the Singaporean wealth fund Temasek Holdings, bought a minority stake in the company, causing its market capitalisation to reach a reported S$200300 million. Secretlab reported 2020 chair deliveries of "at least" 500,000. For the fiscal year 2020, the annual operating profit and revenue were an estimated S$70 million and S$350 million respectively. Reception of products. "PC Gamer" named Secretlab's Omega 2020 the best gaming chair of 2019, praising it for its adjustable armrest; the same product was named best gaming chair in 2020  by "GamesRadar+". In 2020, there were complaints that the covering of certain chairs sometimes peeled away; Ang commented that this was due to unexpectedly high humidity and that it was being addressed.