Lyto Brands Group: Personalized print products as a business model

The Lyto Brands Group wants to personalize the homes of millions of people with its brands for personalized products. Proprietary software is to help with this.

In e-commerce, pre-financing goods is a common risk that companies and investors alike shy away from, as a flop often means being stuck with unsaleable goods. Lars Klein and Niklas Mallmann have tackled these challenges and taken their own path with the Lyto Brands Group: their business model is based on personalized products that are only produced after the order has been placed. This not only prevents overproduction and is therefore sustainable, but also protects the company's liquidity as no goods have to be pre-financed.

Development of niche brands for personalized products

Lyto uses a diverse range of products, from individually designed posters and acrylic glass products to home textiles and accessories. This product range enables the company to adapt to a wide variety of customer requirements and offer a personalized product for every occasion. Despite the potential of print-on-demand, only a few European players have so far managed to establish themselves as brands in the market for personalized products. Lyto has set itself the goal of closing this gap. With an approach that creates theme-based niche brands such as "MeinBabyposter" for births or "Hey Balu" for pets, Klein and Mallmann strive to create brands that are the first choice for personalized gifts for specific customer groups, such as pet owners.

Technological expertise as differentiation

Lars Klein, who studied computer science at the University of Cologne and earned a master's degree at the Leipzig Graduate School of Management, brings technical expertise to the company as a developer. His experience flows into the development of Lyto's complex back-end systems, which ensure efficient processing of personalized orders. Unusual for an e-commerce company: Lyto has developed around 500,000 lines of code over the last two years to automate the complex processes of creating and handling personalized products. Niklas Mallmann, a WHU graduate and former management consultant, is dedicated to the creative aspects of Lyto, such as content creation and product development. The ability to design creative processes efficiently could be an advantage for Lyto in establishing itself in the industry. Both founders aim to position Lyto as a leading provider of personalized products in Europe - a plan that, if successfully implemented, could put the company at the forefront of this market.

Growth and support from renowned investors

Lyto's strategy of reducing the personalization process to under 30 seconds and focusing on mobile users reflects the importance of speed and ease of use in the customer experience. The main communication channels are video-centric channels such as TikTok and Instagram Reels, which underlines the focus on a younger, moving-image-savvy target group. With growth of around 400% over the past two years, Lyto could set a trend in the e-commerce sector that focuses on the creation of so-called love brands - brands that are appreciated not only for their products, but also for their values, community and service. Lyto is supported by investors such as Ole Strohschnieder, founder of Just Spices, and Philipp Kadelbach, founder of Flightright. A team of 15 and an in-house content production agency form the backbone of the company, which focuses on creating authentic and engaging content for its customers. While Lyto's vision is to become a leader in the European market for personalized products, it remains an ambitious undertaking that requires commitment, creativity and continuous adaptation to rapidly changing market conditions.