The Sound Board

Brand Spotlight: Soma Water

The LSTN team are obviously huge fans of social enterprise, so we wanted to start sharing brands that we LOVE that have both great design and values. First up is Soma - a beautifully designed water filter that gives proceeds to charity:water with every purchase. We caught up with our friend Mike Del Ponte, Founder and CEO of Soma. 
What was the inspiration behind Soma?

Soma was born one dark and stormy San Francisco night when I was hosting a dinner party. A friend asked me for a glass of water, so I walked into the kitchen, opened my fridge, and grabbed my "other brand" water filter. As I looked down at the cheap plastic container laden with black flakes I knew I couldn’t place it on me nicely set dinner table. So I decided to pour the filtered water into a glass wine decanter.

Unfortunately (or fortunately) as I did, the lid of the water pitcher fell off, causing water to splash all over my kitchen floor. Just then, one of my other friends came into the kitchen. I asked him, “Why doesn’t someone create a water filter that’s beautifully designed, easy to use, and made of sustainable materials?” My friend replied, “Why don’t we do it?”

The clouds parted. A company was born. The rest is water under the bridge!

 
What is your favorite memory from a trip with charity water?
I can't say it was my favorite moment, but I'll never forget going to a village that had just received a new water well. One of the elders stood up and said, "I'm 76 years old and today is the first day that I actually get to drink clean water." He has spent his life drinking out of a local swamp with the animals. With just one well, his life and the lives of everyone in his community were transformed. Since then, Soma has funded clean drinking water projects for thousands of people. 
 
What is currently on your playlist?
Anything by Kaskade. He has a sound that evokes many of the attributes of Soma's design: sleek, clean, fun and always thirsting for more.
 
Anything else you want us to share?
At Soma, we often get asked, "How much water should I really drink?" We built a really cool online calculator to easily answer that question. You can find it here. 

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