The problem. Who actually likes umbrellas?

We’ve all been there with a bad umbrella…when it’s up, it’s breaking in the wind. When it’s down, it’s dripping water everywhere or left in a corner to dry and then forgotten. 

Gilley is here to change that. With a unique watertight case and built to withstand the strongest winds, this is the umbrella, without the pain.

The solution. An umbrella with none of the pain points.

The Gilley has a unique hard, watertight case to pop your umbrella into when wet, meaning it’s instantly dry to put away in your pocket or bag. 

The weather is unpredictable, but the Gilley is reliable. It’s sturdy in the strongest of winds (up to 30mph, to be exact). 

It’s the size of a 500ml reusable water bottle, and slimmer and lighter too. The ultimate commuting companion.

How does it work?

Left is loose, right is tight!

To use the case as an optional handle, screw the bung/small handle into the open end of the case. Twist right until secure.

The umbrella is designed to be stored in the case damp.

Rewards

Choose each umbrella individually from royal blue with either grey or cyan green as an accent colour in the post-project survey.

The specs

Is it a water bottle? 

No, but it is smaller and lighter than one!

The case

Did we mention it doubles as an optional handle?!

What about this double handle thing?

The umbrella part

We didn’t want to create a stylish case to then fill it with yet another unreliable umbrella.

Why do you care so much about umbrellas?

No existing option answers all the pain points. As a result, 1 billion end up in landfill each year.

About Gilley

Founders’ story

Gilley was dreamt up, designed and tested in London. And because we’re from here, we really know rain.  

After moving from New York to London to study, our founder Reid often found his daily commute became a battle against the elements, leaving him sodden and bedraggled. Fuelled by his frustration he set about finding a solution to unreliable umbrellas.

While road-testing a late prototype, Reid met Jack while walking their dogs. Their conversation, naturally, began with the weather and ended in a partnership. 2 years and 14 prototypes later we have the team and the Gilley as we know it today. 

Why are you crowdfunding?

The idea for Gilley was born out of daily London life. Over the past two years, it was developed, discussed and tested endlessly with and by the people closest to us. We are really proud of what we have developed and now want to launch on an accessible platform and have more people using and enjoying it. This crowdfund will support our first large scale production run and wider launch ambitions.

How can you support us?

Simple, by buying an umbrella! Or two. Or 10. For your partner, friends, family, colleagues or guy at the pub. The beauty of it is you help us launch Gilley into the world by helping us secure our initial batch of stock. You also get an umbrella that will always keep you dry.

Design and Manufacturing 

We’ve worked with an award-winning design team and ISO certified manufacturer to create a best-in-class product. That means expertise in design and manufacturing, with high quality tooling already completed and quality control checks in place. We have developed 14 prototypes, so we are very confident in the final design and product that you are now able to purchase!

Worldwide Shipping

Thank you.

We couldn’t have got to this point without the support of our friends and family, as well as our early backers. We have been helped on our way by a talented and energetic cast of characters, so in true Oscars-acceptance speech style, we would like to give our thanks to the following roll-call of top people:

John Mouratis, Gabriel Athanasiou, Annie Kruntcheva, Christian Tuckwell-Smith, Eleni Wellard, Ziyi Li, The Centreline crew (Harrison Packard, Anthony Cooper, Chris Winup, Neil White).