HOW A SMALL BUOY SAVES LIVES
RESTUBE GmbH
RESTUBE GmbH
Lifestyle
2012
Founder and CEO
Christopher Fuhrhop
The product: Small, lightweight, lifesaving
More freedom and safety in and around water for everyone!
Restube is an innovative safety product for anyone who spends time in the water. The inflatable buoy is carried in a compact bag on a belt or on swimwear. In an emergency—whether due to exhaustion, cramps, or a sudden fall into the water—a pull on the trigger is enough to inflate a buoy that you can hold on to. Developed for swimmers, surfers, sailors, and rescue workers, Restube has proven countless times that it can save lives. The system offers maximum freedom of movement without compromising safety, especially for water sports enthusiasts. There are different versions optimized for different applications, from recreational users to professional rescue workers.
Facts
01 International distribution: Over 500,000 people in more than 25 countries use Restube products for greater safety in the water.
02 Life-saving successes: More than 60 documented cases show that Restube has saved people in critical situations.
03 Focus on sustainability: Restube products are durable, reusable, and made from environmentally friendly materials.
USP
What makes Restube unique?
Compared to traditional life jackets, Restube is lightweight, discreet, and versatile. While a life jacket is often bulky and restricts movement, Restube offers a compact alternative that is only inflated in an emergency. The system is also reusable, as it can be easily refitted with a new CO₂ cartridge. This flexibility has contributed to Restube being used not only by water sports enthusiasts, but also by rescue services and police forces worldwide.
The founding story
Born from personal experience
The idea for Restube arose from a critical personal experience. Founder Christopher Fuhrhop, an avid kitesurfer, found himself in a dangerous situation in the water. This experience gave him the idea of developing a lightweight and easy-to-use rescue system. Supported by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), he began developing the first prototypes, which eventually led to market readiness. In 2012, they founded Restube GmbH. Today, Restube is a globally recognized brand for water safety and has established itself in many areas.
The biggest challenges in the start-up process
When you launch a genuine innovation, there is no “real” data about the market. You simply don’t know whether there are actually buyers for the price. You have no experience of how the product will behave with users or how they will use it exactly. And you have no experience of whether the processes you have put in place to handle day-to-day business will even begin to work. But all these challenges and variables make the whole thing all the more exciting.
Cooperations
How Restube ensures safety worldwide
Investments, financing, and growth
To scale up the company, Restube raised €600,000 from 640 investors in 2016 via the crowd investing platform Seedmatch. The funds were used to further develop the products and expand internationally. In 2021, the company recorded sales of over €2 million – its most successful year to date.
Advice for founders by Christopher Fuhrhop
“Personally, I think it’s important to trust people and talk openly about your challenges. Even with people from different backgrounds. Because most of the time, someone else has already solved or experienced something similar to what you’re going through right now.”
The faces of Restube
Restube was founded by Christopher Fuhrhop and Marius Kunkis. The company is currently managed by Christopher Fuhrhop (founder & CEO) and Lothar Keppler (CEO).
