DUBLIN
CALIFORNIA
the
pivot
-
The Nova project was pretty much dead, leaving me heartbroken
-
I still had the 34-page business plan in my back pocket
Persevering towards my passion, I then thought that it should be much cheaper to produce much simpler products, with less people involved.
Could it be possible to make money on a variety of much simpler products?
September 2016
WHAT
NOW?
meanwhile...
I was working on a commissioned painting.
The painting was for an engineering mentor whom I had met through my motorcycling days. He connected me with my internship from the previous summer, and we were still in contact.
I was also working a nine-to-five AutoCAD job.
While the Makeup brush cleaner project was in limbo for the Summer of 2016, I was under pressure from my surrogate family (the Nova family) to get a conventional job - this was to be protocol while waiting for next steps from the product firm.
The job was with the nearby Ross corporate HQ, where I interlinked retail spreadsheets with store floor plans in AutoCAD.
The atmosphere was terrible in the CAD contractor's room. On my first day, the person next to me had asked "are you sure you want to work here?"
Like some sort of lunatic, I found myself increasingly aggravated upon trips to the grocery store.
I noticed numerous products that were extremely simple in application and design.
So simple, I knew I could have designed any of them myself, especially after my experience with NOVA.
I thought to myself, "someone is out there making money on these simple designs. The ideas can be so cheap, and so stupid, and yet they're everywhere."
I needed something like that.
During my month at the job, a simple and tangible product idea had come across my mind as I crawled to finish Dave's painting. The idea fit the simplistic new template perfectly.
The Nova business plan had consumed 110% of my time outside of work, not to mention this commissioned painting I had on my plate. With this job in the way, I felt too constricted to pursue these new ideas.
Worst yet, by the time I finished the Nova business plan,
it became clear that I really was the only one pressing on.
So, in protest, I quit my job.
The timing seemed right. It was time to invent again.
I was betting all the marbles once again.
october
2016
OKAy
"Daws industries"
My time now freed up,
I blitzed through the rest of the painting so I could finally hand deliver it to my mentor in Orange County.
But not before powering through an entirely new "business plan," one that outlined my new ideas and the direction I wanted to go.
16 more pages, complete with a rushed and juvenile namesake to get the ball rolling.
Completed Na'Pali Coast Painting
san juan capistrano
southern CALIFORNIA
November
2016
I was happy to reunite with my like-minded mentor.
I filled him in on my most recent challenges while sharing my two business plans.
I preached the viability of Nova to the extent that I could.
While he had plenty of money, he was not interested in investing on an idea that had such a fractured team behind it. I couldn't really blame him.
In the meantime, he taught me how I could use 3D printers and a consumer chemical product called "Smooth-on" to test my new ideas.
We used my CAD files with his 3D printer to create the first-ever 3D printed mold for what would later be known as the Paint Puck brush cleaner.
My tenacious intent was not lost by him.
He paid me $1,000.00 for the painting,
my only time to really "sell" my art.
Aware of his generosity, he insisted that I use the money to fund my new ideas.
He strongly suggested using it to buy my own 3D printer, some Smooth-on silicone, and a few other supplies.
Using that money, I got going.
First 3D-
printed mold
DUBLIN
CALIFORNIA
"c2 inventive" llc
what started as my own
personal hail mary
Was quickly interposed by my former nova partner
eager to piggyback some more...
He had his ideas, and I had mine - a variety of "doodads" to be made simply and cheaply, with the goal of high-volume wholesale distribution.
"More ideas couldn't hurt," I thought.
Developing a range of products under a single umbrella might yield the best shot at a successful one,
as long as prototypes could be made in roughly the same way.
It wasn't my intent to welcome a team effort so soon after how things played out with Nova. However, starting anew without the overbearing father seemed promising enough.
THE C2 UMBRELLA
mY IDEAS
HIS IDEAS
Whiteboard snapshot from December 2016
Razor sleeve
Origin: Professional barbers using Shavette razors experience chafing in-between fingers after extended use.
Concept: An ergonomically textured handle cover that shields their skin from the handle's abrasive edges.
Market: Shavette manufacturers (Dovo, Merlin) Art of Shaving franchises, individual users
paint brush cleaner disk
Origin: Artists habitually smashing delicate paintbrushes against rinse containers while painting.
Concept: An abrasive rubber cup insert that separates submerged brush bristles to quickly and delicately remove paint when rubbed against
Market: Art supply retailers, department stores (crafts section), artistic brush painters
folding
tupperware
Origin: My oldest product concept idea.
Initial Concept: To have compact salsa storage that transforms so that you can reach your hand into without your fingers getting sticky.
As opposed to dirtying a whole new wide-mouth dish and/or not being able to easily store leftovers; (conserve fridge space with stackability)
Market: Tupperware, Glass jar manufacturers, takeout container manufacturers ; particularly Chinese food boxes
staybowlyzer
Origin: The common bong shape mounts the bowl piece at a 45 or some odd angle degree, causing difficulties to fill the bowl with product when mounted
Concept: A rubber skirt/collar for bong smokers allowing them to stabilize their bowl piece upright on a table. Basically a toy for stoners.(For some tobacco use, but primarily marijuana use.)
Market: Smoke/vape retail shops, branded customization (sponsored giveaways) direct-to-consumer (online bulk)
prototyping began
in the confines of our poorly suited apartment.
as well as other legitimizing steps:
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Formation of a fresh LLC
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Domain name purchases
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Customer and industry research
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Hiring a patent attorney