How meeting Obama inspired the Veran brothers to innovate Oura

WHEN two Malaysian brothers Keanne Veran and Shaun Veran co-founded their company Oura, which aims to infuse high-tech solutions into everyday products, the goal is to give back to the organisations that have worked hard to provide hope and inspire change amongst those who are facing life’s obstacles.

In the effort, the mission-driven social enterprise combines technology and design to provide consumers with antimicrobial apparel and home goods that are scientifically backed and extensively verified. Among the products include face masks, aprons, facial cleansing products, clothing and more.

The human story that makes up the brand is what makes it unique. 

Keanne, in particular, did not go through what most 10-year-olds had to endure growing up. He was diagnosed with leukaemia at such a young age that it left him with very limited freedom having to transition from a child to a patient.

“It took me about two to three months to really grasp what was happening,” he shared in a recent interview with The Vibes.

“The first week I was hospitalised to get blood transfusion done because my blood count was so low. I knew something was wrong after seeing my parents distressed because the doctors were running tests.

“The idea of cancer did not come to mind as a child until after the multiple oncology treatments I had to go through, being hooked up to a bunch of wires.

“For that period, I was pretty much quiet, and kept to myself to get through the days,” he added.

Power of a wish

“A lot of people forget or don’t know how hard cancer can impact a family unit, especially when a child is going through the condition,” said his brother, Shaun, who is six years older.

“For our family, I think it changed the daily structure of the household. Because everything revolves around the trips to the hospitals for my brother’s treatments. 

“I'll never forget when my parents talked to me outside of Keanne’s hospital room with tears and realising how serious the situation was,” he added.

Keanne, who is now cancer-free, notes that he started opening up to people more after familiarising himself with chemotherapy.

“I started to talk to the doctors and nurses more, taking in any support system that was being offered to me. 

“One of the biggest ones was the Make-A-Wish programme, which reached out to my family within the first year of my treatment.

“My parents didn’t know about the organisation at first. However, it just sounded like such an incredible thing that they were doing. When they reached out, it was about understanding what a wish meant, and all the possibilities that could come with it,” he said.

After a lot of consideration, the then 23-year-old had made a wish to meet the former president of the United States Barack Obama.

“It took three years for my wish to be granted, and I never waived it because I felt that it would be a worthwhile experience.

“For that meeting with Obama, we all got to experience it together as a family. It was so impactful that it just gave me a sense of gratitude and re-energised my spirit in fighting my diagnosis. 

“Shaun and I also started volunteering for Make-A-Wish after seeing what a granted wish can do to a person,” said Keanne.

“Watching him going through the disease was hard on all of us. So, that is why the Make-A-Wish experience was so incredible because we got to see how transformational the event was for him coming back from it,” chimed Shaun.

“There is just a different spirit that Keanne had. He was more optimistic going through everything after that, facing all the horrible things he had to endure. 

“Oura wanted to give back to the organisation (and those alike through donations) and make more wishes come true by becoming sponsors in return,” he added. This includes providing advanced thinking apparel that carries great relevance and practicality towards healthier lifestyles.

High-tech wellness brand

“It’s worth knowing that most patients find it hard to ask and accept help. At least this is what I felt when I had to reason with myself while dealing with something life-threatening.

“I don’t think there are easy ways to get around coping with a certain diagnosis. But for me, when I start to open up and accept the support, it completely changed my outlook (into becoming more positive), which I believe played a big role in my recovery. 

“I really want people to know that they don’t need to feel alone or be left alone while going through cancer,” shared Keanne.

When Oura launched back in 2017, it was also the year when Keanne was declared a cancer survivor.

“We launched on the same day, and it just felt like the perfect opportunity that pushed the meaning behind the company’s purpose – to give back to the community and support the organisations that we are passionate about,” he expressed.

Thirteen years later, the Los Angeles-based social enterprise is introducing its latest high-tech Active and Air masks finally in Asia.

On why it took the brothers a while to reach the Malaysia and Singapore market for its kick-off on this side of the globe: “When we saw cases increasing in Malaysia, we knew we wanted to offer the market with the safest and most effective mask available”. 

“This is where we grew up, and even being based in the States we are still Malaysian citizens,” said Shaun.

Sharing in detail about the high-tech Active and Air mask options as well as the technology behind them, he notes the difference between the two is mainly the design.

“Both mask designs are built to deliver comfort, maximum protection with breathability, and have the anti-microbial technology directly infused into the fabric. 

“Our Air mask is designed for everyday use, whether it’s going to the store, pharmacy or running errands – perfect for all situations.

“But if you are going to be working out, the Active mask has the additional air diffuser feature around your nose to help ventilate the air that you breathe out and prevent it from blowing straight into your eyes – which is a problem that most masks have”.

Commitment to honest, scientifically-backed manufacturing

Having worked in the biotech space for over six years, and noticing the entire market shifting its focus over to China where the Coronavirus first started to spread back in December 2019, Shaun shared that he knew that masks were a big way to control the spread of viruses.

“So, naturally at Oura we started to quickly develop our masks to bring to the market here in the States.

“In the development process, we worked on creating these masks to have proprietary anti-microbial technology properly incorporated by having it embedded into the thread, instead of having the compound simply coated, like a spray on the fabric.

“What this means is that the antimicrobial property will last a lot longer compared to the typical coating present in some masks, which will chip off after as few as five to 10 washes,” he said.

Oura masks are said to be durable and can stand the test of time through multiple washing where the property remains unchanged verified by lab results.

“We also wanted to develop masks that are really good at filtering out particles because we feel that it is what masks should do.

“We focused on thoroughly validating all our masks with independent third-party laboratories to make sure that these masks can filter the particles well, benchmarking the tests to also follow the standards of surgical masks. Additionally, these masks should not just prevent germs, but also kill them as well.

Apart from that, the brothers took into consideration many aspects like size(s), “…because masks are only as good as how well it fits on your face”. 

“So, we have adjustable nose clips and fitted ear loops so the masks can fit comfortably. These masks are also hypoallergenic. There were a lot of thoughts that went into the development because we know how critical it is for health safety,” shared Shaun.

On double-masking: “While there have been a lot of mixed messaging, I think the reason why a lot of health ministers/officials are advising on double masking (surgical masks and reusable masks) is that a lot of the reusable masks have an uncertainty of how well they filter out bacteria/virus”. 

Additionally, he notes that if a mask is not the right size for you, it is not going to be effective at all in preventing the person from being infected or infecting others.

“The double-masking recommendation is mainly to address the problem of the existing masks, which only filter about 30% of particles, being ineffective. It is also a way to highlight the public to look at the quality of the mask they have been wearing,” said Shaun.

“Our masks filter greater than 99.9% of bacteria, viruses, and 0.1 μm particles. So, if they fit well, you will not need to double mask with them, and this is without even talking about the self-sanitising feature that we incorporate.

“Oura’s mission is to really provide a product that can keep you and your family safe,” he added.

Empowering people to live healthier lives

According to the brothers, everyone needs to stay safe because Malaysia is at a point where there is no room to take chances.

“As we try to overcome the pandemic, it’s important for us to keep looking forward to the recovery part of it as well,” said Keanne. 

“Here in LA, we have also been in and out of lockdown, and you go for so long thinking that things will be better. It is important to keep the faith in reducing the spread and be aware of the information that concerns safe practices, which ensures public health”.

Even with the vaccine rollout, he believes that there will still be a market that will commit to mask-wearing even if the pandemic ends.

“This virus is not going to go away immediately, and there are going to be other cases of flu/common colds that people will be infected by. 

On educating the public to be more conscious of current affairs and generate a forward-thinking approach on matters concerning health and safety, Shaun notes: “It has always been something that Oura strived for. Everything that we do is science-based”. 

“From how we make our product, the technology we utilise to the testing that we partake in – science is just embedded in the entire brand. So, we do educate the public from the get-go, especially on why mask-wearing is important today,” he added.

“The current setting that we are in right now has created a new culture of mask-wearing to reduce the risk of how easily you can get sick or avoid others from getting sick. This [culture] will be adopted worldwide, if not already, especially with the understanding of how easily germs can be transmissible when in contact,” added Keanne when questioned on the product sustainability.

The brothers who have always been close since young highlighted the synergy of their work and that there was never really a set plan to start this business. 

The two had only toyed with the idea before putting things into motion after the Obama meeting. They have also credited their father who has helped in the business consultation on the side.

“I knew I wanted to do more – going into entrepreneurship specifically. Shaun had a science background, and so as we played with each other’s strength (with me having an economics background),” said Keanne. 

“We wanted Make-A-Wish to be an integral part of it, and eventually all the pieces lined up perfectly”.

*Oura Active Masks and Air Masks with N95 filter each are priced at RM230 and RM195, respectively. For more information, visit Oura on https://ouragami.com.my/ – The Vibes, June 21, 2021