We interviewed Brand Manager Jessica Mott to get the scoop on this unique smart TV company, where they’ve been in their nearly two decades, and where they’re heading from here.
Tell us about the inception of Séura.
Séura (pronounced “seer-ah”) was founded in 2003 by husband-and-wife team Tim and Gretchen Gilbertson. While touring homes, the Gilbertsons were inspired by an unsuccessful attempt to elegantly incorporate a TV into the bathroom. They started by assembling products in their garage. The first product was the Vanishing Vanity TV Mirror that elegantly displays a TV behind a two-way mirror so you can see the TV when it is turned on and you see a beautiful mirror when the TV is turned off. Séura still carries this product line, although it has improved and continues to improve every year as TV and mirror technology advance.
Séura draws inspiration for both its name and its design philosophy from the work of Georges Seurat, the influential late-19th-century French pointillist painter. Just as clusters of paint work together on Seurat’s canvases to create a masterpiece, pixels of a TV form a cohesive design. Similarly, elements of artwork, furniture, and technology come together to create powerful design. At Séura, we believe the best environments are designed when art and science work together.
What sets Séura apart from competitors in your field and makes your company unique?
The quality and the craftsmanship of what we’re able to deliver is second to none. It’s our employees’ attention to detail that gives Séura the edge against global competition. We can take a customer’s vision for a design and make it a reality.
Séura’s office building and production facility are adjacent to one another. This set-up allows all of the departments, from customer service to technical support to sales to engineering to marketing, to be familiar with the ins-and-outs of the production and quality control processes, and allows the team to respond incredibly fast to customer needs.
How would you define Séura in one sentence?
To quote Gretchen Gilbertson, CEO and Co-Founder, “Séura is a company with the mind of an engineer and the soul of a designer.”
How has the company and its philosophy evolved over the years and what influenced those changes?
Technology has become an even larger and more integrated part of everyday life. With that, Séura’s vision has evolved as well. Instead of bridging the gap between design and technology, Séura is focused on eliminating it. Our team works to find the perfect harmony of design and technology in every product and project so that every individual gets the most from every space they are in.
Our product categories have also evolved. We’ve added TVs designed for every space and place. Our unique televisions and designer mirrors can be found throughout homes, hotels, yachts, spas, restaurants, stadiums, and many more commercial properties around the world.
The Acoustic Architects Connection
What do you value the most about collaborating with Acoustic Architects?
Acoustic Architects is a fantastic partner who will take a client’s vision and work with Séura to turn it into a reality. Séura’s customers are the driving force behind our innovations and customized product offering. We love to see finished projects and how Séura’s products were elegantly incorporated into a space by perfectly balancing technology and design.
Séura’s Products
A TV that is a mirror is a great concept to minimize tech clutter and keep the integrity of a space’s design; what are some feature highlights of the mirror TVs?
Séura TV Mirrors have specially formulated glass that resembles a traditional silver mirror more closely than ever before. The televisions utilize ultra-high brightness panels that permeate through the mirror glass while the display is operating. The result is a true-to-life reflection when off and a bright and vivid picture when on. All of Séura’s mirrors are copper-free and black-edge resistant for a long-lasting mirror that won’t corrode. Séura’s TV Mirrors can be customized by mirror size, mirror shape, TV size, TV location within the mirror, frame, additional integrated technology, and more.
What makes Séura’s lighted mirrors superior to mirrors with a light source nearby?
Séura Lighted Mirrors are available in a variety of lighting designs, from ambient lighting that illuminates the space to task lighting that directs light toward the viewer’s face. Task lighting is especially important for bathroom vanities. Overhead lighting from the ceiling and downlights over mirrors cast shadows on the face and wall sconces on the sides of a mirror are usually too far away and don’t direct light on the user’s face. Lighted mirrors such as Séura’s Lumin and Allegro lighting designs evenly illuminate a viewer’s face with optimal brightness for tasks at the mirror.
Indoor waterproof TVs for the bathroom or kitchen seem pretty straightforward – what are some things people might not know about them?
Séura’s Hydra™ Indoor Waterproof TVs are designed for kitchens, bathrooms, spas, showers, and other wet environments. Despite the product name, many customers ask to confirm that the TVs are truly waterproof, and yes, the TV’s electronics are completely sealed and protected from water to ensure a safe entertainment experience. The TV’s durable tempered glass screen allows for true color-correct viewing and acts as a defogger so nothing can cloud the picture. Séura offers five frame finishes to complement the wall surface, from complementing shower tile to coordinating with kitchen appliances.
How is it your outdoor TVs are able to stand up to the elements? What is your favorite use for outdoor TVs?
Séura Outdoor TVs go through strenuous testing to replicate extreme weather environments, including water and dust ingress testing, humidity testing, hot and cold temperatures, and more. Not only are the TVs protected from snow, ice, rain, and dust, but they also endure temperatures from -40°F up to 140°F and adjust to temperature fluctuations throughout the day. Séura Outdoor TVs include UV protection, so the screens won’t go dark when exposed to direct sunlight.
Many clients enjoy watching TV poolside or while soaking in a hot tub, whether it’s in the middle of winter or on their yacht sailing in the Caribbean.
Smart Home Automation
How has smart home automation changed your approach to TV technology?
We’re excited to partake in the evolution of the smart home and make sure Séura’s products are compatible and contribute to the easy lifestyle that smart home automation allows. Séura TVs are equipped with a vast array of inputs and outputs for users to connect streaming devices and control systems, from Roku, to Chromecast, to Fire TV products and more.
Responsive Living, the term coined by Acoustic Architects founders, Aaron Flint and Spencer Hauldren, is the concept of seamlessly enhancing the client’s unique lifestyle using smart home technology. Responsive Living allows you to interact with your space via touch input, voice command, and predictive automation, placing you in full control of your home.
If you would like to learn more about integrating new systems into your smart home system, feel free to connect with us. We will be happy to schedule a demo with you.
For more information, visit acousticarchitects.net.
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