ZAP by Kiiory Funded in Under an Hour for Fixing the Part of Umbrellas Everyone Hates

Most people don’t really think about their umbrella until they actually need it, literally tossing it aside for a rainy day. It’s only then that they remember the inconvenient part of every umbrella, the moment it needs to be taken out or put away. Usually, it happens while stepping into a car or walking into a building while carrying something in the other hand. It’s that moment it somehow still takes two hands to close properly despite being labeled “automatic.”That part is what made ZAP by Kiiory take off on Kickstarter so quickly. The compact umbrella reached its funding goal in under an hour after launch, turning what could have been another everyday carry campaign into one worth paying attention to. The speed mattered, but the reason behind it mattered more. People understood the product immediately.ZAP is built around a flaw most umbrellas still have. On nearly every “auto-close” umbrella, pressing the button only collapses the canopy. The shaft remains fully extended, forcing the user to manually compress the umbrella afterward before putting it away. It is a small annoyance that becomes much bigger when someone is holding bags, getting children into a car, or trying not to drip water across a floor.

ZAP changes the mechanism itself instead of adding another feature around it. With it, one push retracts both the canopy and the shaft simultaneously in under one second. The umbrella compresses down immediately and secures with a simple compression band instead of the fabric sleeve most people lose after a week anyway.The design is notable because nobody had truly solved this pain point before. Umbrellas have seen changes over the years, from materials and improved wind resistance to becoming lighter over the years. But the actual closing process has remained mostly untouched.

The product also avoids the trap that a lot of Kickstarter hardware falls into, the addition of unnecessary technology. ZAP has no batteries, electronics, charging ports, or app integrations built in. The mechanism is fully mechanical, which helps the product as much as the one-button system itself, considering people are becoming more selective about the products they actually want connected or software-dependent. An umbrella is usually not one of them.Another factor in the campaign’s success is the team’s history. ZAP is not coming from a first-time creator trying to figure out manufacturing after funding ends. It comes from A.Brolly International Co., Ltd and Grant Barnett Designs LLP, companies with both manufacturing experience and an unusually strong crowdfunding record.Before ZAP, the team launched 14 Kickstarter campaigns and delivered all 14. Their previous campaign, the Kiiory Graphene Hoodie, raised more than 1,600% of its funding target before shipping successfully to backers. Backers are not only buying into the idea. They are buying into a track record that already exists.The umbrella itself is larger than most compact models despite how small it becomes when stored. Its 51-inch canopy can cover two adults shoulder-to-shoulder, while the closed form shrinks to 12cm folded length, small enough to disappear into a tote bag or backpack pocket without needing a separate sleeve.

The Kickstarter campaign remains live with pricing starting at £26 during limited Early Bird availability before moving to standard campaign tiers. Couple packs, family packs, and the six-color bundle include free worldwide shipping.

What makes ZAP interesting is not that it reinvented the umbrella completely. It identified a part of the experience that people had tolerated for decades and removed it cleanly. That tends to be how the best everyday products work.