Founder Spotlight: Eli Lazar (Snooz)

Company name: Snooz

Company blurb: Developer of next-generation air and sound products for consumers and businesses.

Company website: www.getsnooz.com

Company headquarters: Las Vegas, NV

Founder’s hometown: Champaign, IL

Founder fun fact:

I have a lot of family in Arizona and visit there frequently. A few years ago I was hiking on top of Mount Lemmon and got stuck in a severe thunderstorm at 8000 feet, on an exposed, rocky side of the mountain. With about an hour hike left back to my car, a lightning bolt struck a tree 20 feet from me and it burst into sparks. It was the loudest thunder I had ever heard and the most scared I have ever been.

Why did you decide to start your company?

I always had a natural interest in developing products or looking for ways to improve processes, but perhaps to the extent or at the pace that was not readily welcomed at existing companies. Also, I want to create good jobs for people so I can help them to have a stable platform to launch their lives from.

What is one thing that you want people to know about your company?

No matter what size our company ever grows to, I would reduce my salary to the bare minimum for survival before I would ever consider laying off a single person. Prior to SNOOZ, I worked for a large company that went through several rounds of layoffs and forced job location transfers. I saw how destabilizing that was for people and never want to do that to another person. We can’t be successful without adding people to the company, but making sure we do so in a way that is stable and keeps the work environment enjoyable is always at the forefront of my mind.

When you were younger, what did you want to be when you grew up? Did you always know you wanted to be an entrepreneur?

I really enjoyed studying the stars and wanted to be an astronomer. However, my mother helped me to see the difference between enjoying a field as a hobby versus enjoying it as an occupation, so I choose Aerospace Engineering instead.

What is one piece of advice you’d like to pass on to new founders?

First, in the history of the world, nothing great has ever been accomplished without personal sacrifice. Be prepared to be persistent, because I am certain the journey will challenge you and at times force you to question the path, but stay the course. Second, don’t get distracted by other ideas. Any idea I come up with that is not related to the bedroom or sleep, I write down in a book and move on.