Once people know about the glove project, they come to me with the questions of how did I do that and who did I know to call. One of the parents from Mason's school asked me about a product idea he has and as I was sharing with him what I know, he informed me that he sent his idea to an invention company. He went on to say that they wanted $1800 from him to secure the patent, in his name, and bring his product to market. I asked him what was in it for them. He didn't know. I suspect a lot.
My thoughts during our conversation were to absolutely not pay $1800, file a provisional patent application on his own, and start shopping this idea to companies that may be interested in licensing it. In the meantime, look into what it would cost to manufacture just in case that's the road he ended up traveling. He felt like he found a resource in me and I felt good that he wasn't handing over too much money when in all likelihood, this deal was not going to shake out the way it was presented initially.
What do you think? Have you ever seen success from an invention company? I haven't.
Showing posts with label Agreements. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Agreements. Show all posts
Friday, August 7, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
"Do You Have That? You Know You Need It, Right?"
We are in high gear getting ready for out first trade show in September. As we work through the things we obviously know we need, we're finding that we need so many not-so-obvious things, too.
Did you know you need a style sheet or "how to use" for your logo? What that means is, you have to have your retailers agree to only use your logo or brand as you allow. The appearance has to always be consistent and positioned as you want it to appear. That may be in their advertising or signage in their store, but not for their personal use or worse. There's more to this, lots more, but we're not going to go into it here.
How about making sure your manufacturer can produce a large order, a very large order. You may think, of course they can, but do you know? In our case, Dave realized that we need to be sure the skus are issued for not only our five sizes in two new colors, but also three larger sizes, also in the two new colors. That's sixteen new skus created in our manufacturers system before our show in just under six weeks.
There have been so many things that have come up in the last two weeks that I just can't imagine boring you with all of it (not to mention, I can't remember it all off the top of my head!). Suffice it to say, this has been and continues to be an incredible journey. It feels like yesterday that I sat at my kitchen table cutting up a poorly designed children's snow glove. I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it a million more times, just start! If you just take those first steps, you'll be amazed at how soon all those steps create your dream journey!
Did you know you need a style sheet or "how to use" for your logo? What that means is, you have to have your retailers agree to only use your logo or brand as you allow. The appearance has to always be consistent and positioned as you want it to appear. That may be in their advertising or signage in their store, but not for their personal use or worse. There's more to this, lots more, but we're not going to go into it here.
How about making sure your manufacturer can produce a large order, a very large order. You may think, of course they can, but do you know? In our case, Dave realized that we need to be sure the skus are issued for not only our five sizes in two new colors, but also three larger sizes, also in the two new colors. That's sixteen new skus created in our manufacturers system before our show in just under six weeks.
There have been so many things that have come up in the last two weeks that I just can't imagine boring you with all of it (not to mention, I can't remember it all off the top of my head!). Suffice it to say, this has been and continues to be an incredible journey. It feels like yesterday that I sat at my kitchen table cutting up a poorly designed children's snow glove. I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it a million more times, just start! If you just take those first steps, you'll be amazed at how soon all those steps create your dream journey!
Monday, June 8, 2009
Can You Work With Your Spouse?
Some couples work together beautifully and others wind up in divorce court. What about you, could you work with your spouse?
I've worked with my friend Mike and it worked out fine. We had some ups and downs, but we always seemed to be able to work through them. I've also worked with my friend Julie, and that didn't go as smoothly. Fortunately, we've been friends long enough, we could recognize that the work relationship was not working and the friendship was far too valuable to put at risk.
Dave and I have never worked together in a full time capacity. We plan to once the glove business starts to get busy. I think we can do it and here's why. Our relationship is based on friendship. We were friends for more than six years before any romance began to blossom. We got to know each other, the good and the bad, with no prejudice. As we've made our way through almost eight years of marriage, we do a really good job of defining our roles and each others expectations of said role. If we just keep working our business the way we've worked every other aspect of our relationship, we'll be just fine.
What do you think, could you work with your spouse? A good friend? I'm interested to know what you think!
I've worked with my friend Mike and it worked out fine. We had some ups and downs, but we always seemed to be able to work through them. I've also worked with my friend Julie, and that didn't go as smoothly. Fortunately, we've been friends long enough, we could recognize that the work relationship was not working and the friendship was far too valuable to put at risk.
Dave and I have never worked together in a full time capacity. We plan to once the glove business starts to get busy. I think we can do it and here's why. Our relationship is based on friendship. We were friends for more than six years before any romance began to blossom. We got to know each other, the good and the bad, with no prejudice. As we've made our way through almost eight years of marriage, we do a really good job of defining our roles and each others expectations of said role. If we just keep working our business the way we've worked every other aspect of our relationship, we'll be just fine.
What do you think, could you work with your spouse? A good friend? I'm interested to know what you think!
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Round Three!
I got the third copy of our agreement with our manufacturer. Before I tell you if it was right, I want to share with you a little something I was advised of. I am not a lawyer, lord knows you can read these pages and know that! The individual who shared this nugget with me is also not a lawyer, but they play one on TV, no just kidding, I couldn't help myself! It doesn't matter if any of us are lawyers or not, this piece of information just made sense.
When I got the second copy of our agreement and it was exactly the same as the first (without the changes), it was my inclination to write the thing myself and send it back to them corrected. I starting spouting off about how I could just do this myself when the words, "No, just hand write the changes on their original and mail it back to them." came quietly across the air waves. The low volume of the voice made me listen as I continued to hear, "...the party that originated the document has more responsibility for it's contents in a court of law than the party who signs/agrees to it." Really? Wow! It makes sense really. When you write something, you know completely what you are putting on the table. There is a much larger margin for error if you are simply reading, interpreting, and hopefully understanding what you are agreeing to.
The woman who is responsible for drawing up the documents for our agreement received my notes and asked me to please make the changes and send it back to them. I did, electronically, and e-mailed the document back to her. She printed it on their company letter head, with the changes, CEO signed it and sent it back to me to "agree to." I did, and mailed it back...at my own expense! They did not provide a third stamped self addressed envelope! Laughing!
When I got the second copy of our agreement and it was exactly the same as the first (without the changes), it was my inclination to write the thing myself and send it back to them corrected. I starting spouting off about how I could just do this myself when the words, "No, just hand write the changes on their original and mail it back to them." came quietly across the air waves. The low volume of the voice made me listen as I continued to hear, "...the party that originated the document has more responsibility for it's contents in a court of law than the party who signs/agrees to it." Really? Wow! It makes sense really. When you write something, you know completely what you are putting on the table. There is a much larger margin for error if you are simply reading, interpreting, and hopefully understanding what you are agreeing to.
The woman who is responsible for drawing up the documents for our agreement received my notes and asked me to please make the changes and send it back to them. I did, electronically, and e-mailed the document back to her. She printed it on their company letter head, with the changes, CEO signed it and sent it back to me to "agree to." I did, and mailed it back...at my own expense! They did not provide a third stamped self addressed envelope! Laughing!
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