Invention Revolutionizes Ear Muffs
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Inventors: Ron L. Wilson II, 38, and Brian Le Gette, 38, co-founders of 180°s LLC in Baltimore
Product Description: The 180°s Ear Warmers aren’t your typical earmuffs-they have been modified to fit around the back of the neck rather than over the head so users don’t mess up their hair.
Start-Up: About $7,000 to finance the first 250 test units and approximately $100,000 (raised from 18 graduate school friends and other private investors) to launch the company in 1995
The Challenge: Launching an innovative product with a strong consumer need despite limited capital
Before Ron L. Wilson II and Brian Le Gette got into the earmuff business, the product category had become stagnant in terms of innovation–winter after winter, people warmed their ears by donning the same old style of earmuffs. But this tired product category spelled opportunity for these partners, who were sure they could catch consumers’ attention with a better solution. From getting financing to test-marketing the concept, here are the steps they took to launch their innovative product:
Steps to Success
1. Draw upon your experience. Wilson first got the idea for the 180°s Ear Warmer in 1986 while attending Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia. His ears were cold, but he didn’t want to wear something that didn’t look good. Because of his personal experience with traditional earmuffs, Wilson knew an improved version that was stylish and hairdo-friendly would be successful.
2. Consider improving a product that hasn’t had much innovation. The 180’s Ear Warmer idea had a key success criterion: “We were looking to reinvent a product where the existing products were stale,” Le Gette says. “Nothing new had happened [in the market] for years.”
3. Make sure there’s a market for your product. “We knew people had cold ears but didn’t want to wear hats or earmuffs because they ruined their hair,” Wilson says. But to ensure the market was right, they polled friends, family and acquaintances.
4. Offer customers a product with perceived value. New products fall into three categories: low-priced goods that sell at mass merchandisers, midrange products that sell at specialty stores, and high-value products that target high-end shops. Because inventors without capital usually have trouble investing enough in manufacturing to keep prices down, they need a high-value product that can sell for a higher price. In this case, the 180°s Ear Warmers sell for $30 vs. $3.50 to $6.50 for regular earmuffs. As long as customers believe your product has value, they’ll spend more for it.
5. Produce tangible results that show your product will sell. Wilson and Le Gette initially sold 250 of the Ear Warmers at their graduate school, the University of Pennsylvania, during a cold winter. “We sold [them] on campus out of a cooler with a thermometer in front showing the temperature,” Wilson says. He and Le Gette used the profits to produce another 750 units to sell on campus.
6. Raise enough capital to launch the product. Once they had some sales, Wilson and Le Gette asked friends and classmates for money-and raised $100,000. Other options might have included either bank financing or acquiring an SBA loan. Inventors without cash can also choose to launch in disadvantaged neighborhoods, where loans and grants are available.
7. Use the edge you’ve developed to market other new products. Wilson describes the 180°s concept as “products that help people deal with the elements.” All of their new products build on this tradition–innovative new ways to stylishly deal with the cold.
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