Idea > Invention > Business

Around 2010, my wife and I had "A-Ha" moments for an invention. Both moments came along while going about our routine days and then asked ourselves "Wouldn't it be nice if there was a thing to solve this issue?"

Attempt at inventing...

I came up with my uniform hanger idea while walking down steps to the office, carrying my uniform on a hanger on one hand, and holding my uniform cover on the other hand. I said to myself "I sure wish there was a hook on this hanger so that I have a free hand." So I came up with the Liberty Hanger below and developed a prototype simply adding a wall hook to a nice coat hanger! As the idea came to fruition we realized it was good for civilian outfits as well!

My wife had a similar experience during a family trip at Universal Studios Hollywood. It was a hot day and all benches were sticky and hot. She said to herself "Wouldn't it be nice to have a seat towel that I can take anywhere, wrap it neatly, and put it on my purse!" From there we came up with Bottoms Up! So family helped to put the prototype together with microfiber towel and a sewing machine.

What we did

This happened so long ago, so I'll hit the key actions that I can recall.

For Liberty Hanger...

• Worked with an Intellectual Property attorney to assist with applying for filing a Design Patent. We submitted our sketches and they have a Drafter on call to help draw the invention to application standards through AutoCAD.

• Obtained a Sellers License, Business License, and Employer Identification Number (EIN). The EIN helped to obtain the hangers, hooks, and screws in bulk at a reasonable price.

• Used GoDaddy to make a website and enable purchases via PayPal on the website.

• We found a producer from Alibaba.com.

• We rented a booth at the Marine Corps Exchange at Miramar on the weekends to gain exposure and feedback from the Marines walking outside the store. Also, we got rented space to sell the Liberty Hangers after the MCRD San Diego Boot Camp graduations.

For Bottoms Up...

• We worked with the same IP attorney to apply for a Design Patent.

• Looked into possible materials for the pouch. We were getting ideas from reuseable shopping bags and went to the Garment District in Los Angeles for fabrics.

• We looked into a Trademark for Bottoms Up.

Challenges and Realities

Starting your business takes personal commitment. Trying to do this while both of us worked full time jobs and having a normal life can be challenging. You definitely have to ask yourself how much you want to commit and sacrifice to make it successful. With that, here are some additional insights and realities while doing this short journey into small business.

• Presence and visibility need to be persistent. You'll need to budget to have your site to be at the top of Google search results.

• Renting a booth once a week is not enough consistent presence. I felt like I needed to be at the booth 7-days a week. People walking out of the store aren't quick to buy a new idea. They need some time to let the idea sink in and be assured I will be around the next time they come by the booth.

• Patents do not guarantee success. They provide some level of legal protection. But getting one is expensive. I would've needed to sell a lot of hangers at a profit to get that investment back.

• Be ready to take your product and make it yourself temporarily, even to have an inventory of 50-100 units. The feedback from some Alibaba.com producers is that they have a 10,000 unit production minimum. Low production numbers costs them money! I was lucky enough to find someone to produce 1,000 Tag Clips.

• Be ready to completely part with your investment and capital. It may not pan out! But you do have the "freedom" to choose to make it work.

• I would say that the average person is not quick to steal your invention with all the work and resources that's required. So take the risk to put the product to market and see if it's something customers would buy.

• Ideas will likely be stolen when they know they can bring the product at scale and make money very soon after seeing the idea.

• With all the challenges, there are tax benefits to starting up and operating a business. The benefits kick when you're actually making revenue.

Though we didn't take our respective inventions all the way, it was definitely a learning experience and gave some lessons to consider if we ever wanted to try going on our own again with a different product or service.

Hope this helped and good luck if you try to start your own business!

What idea did you have for an invention?

What's realities have you experienced?

What sacrifices would you make for potential success?