Naples woman’s invention tells good eggs from the bad

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It’s hard to tell a bad egg by its shell, especially if you already dyed it bright pink for Easter.

But, if you want to test the egg for freshness before you dye it, a local inventor hopes to help you out.

After testing her own eggs at home for decades, Trish Horst, a product developer with five patents under her belt, created Good Egg-Bad Egg! to offer a more exact definition of freshness. The product isn’t on the market yet, but Walgreens and other retailers have shown interest and Horst expects it to be out well before you start dying next year’s Easter eggs.

Good Egg-Bad Egg!, which has patents pending and is now being manufactured, is a 16-ounce, liquid measuring cup with four lines on the side to indicate the freshness, depending on its buoyancy, ranging from “Bad Egg! Do Not Use!” at the top to “Real Fresh Egg! Enjoy!” at the bottom.

To test an egg, fill the cup with water, drop it in and see where it settles.

On an afternoon this week, Horst sat at a table in her Naples condo with a six-egg carton and a glass Good Egg-Bad Egg! prototype for a demonstration. She only buys half-dozen egg cartons, because she likes her eggs super fresh.

Horst lifted the first egg for inspection — it was smooth and white, without cracks — and dropped it into the tester. The egg sunk to the bottom and laid on its side.

“That’s a really fresh egg,” she said. “See how it’s laying sideways on the bottom.”

The second egg, which sat on the bottom tipping upward, was a “good egg;” the third, which floated completely upright with its tip out of the water, was rotten.

So why create a tester, when an egg that floats is bad and an egg that sinks is good?

“We wanted to know more, so our tester is calibrated,” Horst said. “We didn’t want to know if it was just good or bad, but how old.”

Horst and her husband Bruce, a mechanical engineer who owns a medical screw manufacturing company, tested dozens of eggs fresh from the farm and from the supermarket to calibrate their egg tester.

Good eggs, which sit on the bottom but tip upward, are between 7 and 10 days old, according to the tester. OK eggs, which settle a little higher, are between 21 and 35 days old and are good for baking.

Family egg-testing habits from her mother and grandmother inspired Good Egg-Bad Egg!, Horst said. The product will be available in plastic and glass, which will probably retail for $2.99 and $4.99, respectively.

Horst, who lives six months of the year in Naples and six months in Rockland, Ill., started as a small business owner in Rockland in the 1950s. She turned to inventing in the early 1970s.

The key to inventing is to be observant, calm and thoughtful, Horst said. Wannabe inventors should take clues from young children, she said, because they look at the world without preconceived ideas about how things should or shouldn’t be done.

Years ago, Horst came up with an idea for simple plastic salad tongs without long handles. Extra Hands, which have a little knob on the back so they rest easily on the side of the salad bowl, have been one of her most successful inventions.

In 2002, Horst sold Extra Hands for about $200,000 and today the product is available online and in stores around the country.

The Good Life, a kitchen and home accessory store in The Plaza on Third Street South in Naples, has been selling “tons of them, in all different colors” for almost a decade, said Scott Schwarz, the owner’s son. A set costs $7.95.

Horst’s other patented inventions include Corner Guard, a piece of disposable cotton to protect the corners of your mouth from chapping while you’re at the dentist; and Rug Bugs, an anchor to keep area rugs and runners from moving on carpet floors.

The Corner Guard idea came from her experience working at a dentist’s office and her own chapped mouth corners after dental visits. The Rug Bug was inspired by her troubles with an area rug that “walked by itself” from its spot on her dressing room floor.

“There are so many opportunities for invention, people just have to take the time not to smell the roses, but to think,” Horst said. “. . . Just think of the things you do from the time you get up in the morning and how you could make those actions simpler or safer.”

Safety is the motivation behind Good Egg-Bad Egg!, and although her calibrated tester won’t be on the market for a while, Horst urged Easter egg makers to make sure their candidates don’t float, just to be safe.

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Young Entrepreneurs Face Higher Hurdles

Changing times for teen mags

Young entrepreneurs are again taking the startup plunge. And why not? It took only 21 months for two twentysomethings to launch and sell YouTube for $1.65 billion.

Still, before the big payoff, many start-ups struggle to find enough funds or clients to get going.

"Money is one of my biggest concerns, says Josh Smith, a 20-year-old junior at the University of Maryland in College Park who recently created his own record label called Indie Street Records. Although he plans to put $16,000 of his own savings into launching the company, he says, "the most difficult challenge is convincing people that you're savvy enough to do something even at a young age."

For all the YouTubes, thousands of young entrepreneurs like Mr. Smith face the daily frustration of having a business idea but the inability to get a foot in the door with potential investors or decision makers that can turn a business idea into a reality. Here are five strategies that may help you increase your odds of success when pitching a business idea to a new client or investor.

1. Be persistent

Laura Darrah, 28, co-founder of Treesje, a handbag and accessory company in Los Angeles, says persistence has been the key to her company's success.

She and her partner, Sheila Nazarian, each contributed $1,000 to get the venture off the ground despite a lack of experience in running a business.

They became regulars at fashion tradeshows to find buyers for their travel-inspired designs. "We pounded the pavement to get our name and products out there. I had to hone my negotiation skills very quickly," says Ms. Darrah, describing her first year in business.

Treesje purses and accessories can be found in upscale chains like Nordstrom and Bloomingdales and in more than 400 retailers world-wide, and Ms. Darrah says the company had gross sales of $1.25 million in 2006.

"Persistence does work," says Ms. Darrah. "We wanted to be in Bloomingdales since the very beginning, but got the brush off for the first two years of business. They finally got back with us last year, and now our bags are in Bloomingdales."

2. Partner up

For young entrepreneurs with no track record of success, the right connection can mean the difference between being in business or not. Unfortunately, most young entrepreneurs lack these all-important relationships. It can help to find a partner that does.

Prior to starting her company, Ms. Darrah had never worked in the fashion industry while Ms. Nazarian had. They met at a friend's wedding where they discovered a common love of fashion and a desire to start their own business. Ms. Darrah had just received a master's degree in business administration from San Diego State University, where she gained business savvy, and Ms. Nazarian had been building up her contacts in the fashion industry as a buyer for an apparel company in Los Angeles. Eager to get started, the two met a week after the wedding, and Treesje was born. The company has benefited from their distinct sets of skills and interests.

"I'm more behind the scenes, while Sheila has the sales tenacity," Ms. Darrah says. "We've moved twice as fast with two people involved, she says. Together, "we have double the amount of connections."

3. Hire the connections

If a partner isn't readily available, another option is to hire a professional that does. A business consultant, marketing expert or publicist can bring a Rolodex of contacts that a young entrepreneur might not have.

Although it cost the Treesje partners $1,000 a month, Ms. Darrah says hiring a publicist turned out to be one of the best decisions the company initially made. Treesje's publicist was able to get a one of their handbags into the hands of Sarah Jessica Parker through a contact who worked for "Sex and the City." A picture of Ms. Parker carrying their handbag was later published in US Weekly magazine.

"Relationships matter, especially in our industry where celebrities dictate what is hip and in fashion," says Ms. Darrah. "A little luck isn't always a bad thing either."

4. Stand out from the crowd

"I think the main problem was getting people to take me seriously since I was so young when I started," says Tina Wells, who started Buzz Marketing Group, a youth-focused marketing-services company, at the age of 16.

To get around this potential roadblock, Ms. Wells, Buzz's chief executive officer, says she tried to focus potential clients' attention on her work, rather than her age.

"Be willing to take risks in your work," she says. "For instance, Buzz Marketing published a report that said that college students did not think downloading was illegal, and they were not going to stop. This got a lot of attention for us."

She says Buzz has been successful because "we strive to produce the most interesting recommendations and analysis for our clients. "

5. Launch it anyway

Mr. Smith has taken the right step in starting the record label even without a financial backer, according to Carlos Barrionuevo, director of business development at NPR (National Public Radio) and co-founder of Blackvoices.com, a media company targeted to African-Americans.

"If you're young and have a great idea for a company or product, you probably won't get far in pitching an idea that is just on paper to a large company or investor," he says. "Set a vision for what it could be, and do as much as you can on your own. Demonstrate some amount of success. Even if it's in a small way, others can see where it's going."

But he cautions not to expect success overnight. For most start-ups, success takes patience.

"Don't expect it all at once," he says. "Sometimes it can take five-to-six years before something takes off."

-- Ms. Garton is a free-lance writer in Washington, D.C. She's the founder of UniversityChic.com, an online publication for university women.

Email your comments to sjeditor@dowjones.com.

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Mother Entrepreneur Pitches Invention to QVC

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Chino Hills, Ca -- Apr 23, 2007 -- /prbuzz/ -- Have you designed a new product and are now stuck wondering about the next big step? Jasmine Thompson, owner of The Sack Rack, wondered this too; but on March 26th she presented her idea to QVC executives in Los Angeles, California, along with thousands of other inventors. If The Sack Rack is chosen as one of the top ten finalists, Jasmine will head to Chicago to present her product to the Oprah Winfrey Show, who is in search of the next big idea. If Oprah’s studio audience decides that The Sack Rack is the next big idea, Jasmine will have the opportunity to sell her product on QVC. Not bad for this busy mother of three, whose children include a three month old baby and a three and a five year old.

Why did Jasmine take this route for getting her product out into the hands of the public? “We wanted to try QVC since the channel is known for selling unique items, and a large demographic of the QVC audience are moms.”

The Sack Rack is a plastic, lightweight device, small enough to fit into a purse but strong enough to carry up to 50 pounds of groceries. The design of The Sack Rack keeps the grocery bags closed even when the bags are set on the ground, making it a perfect item for mass transit or for use in the back of the car: No more chasing after runaway fruit. The Sack Rack also frees up the second hand, allowing the user to hold on to keys, stair railings, or a child’s hand.

Originally designed by a friend of the Thompson family, The Sack Rack remained dormant due to lack of funds until Jasmine and her husband Bill came along. Jasmine’s family believed so much in The Sack Rack that they used the money that they had in their bank account and invested. Their first step was to hire a patent attorney; a patent is pending at this time. The time has now come to begin marketing the product, and Jasmine feels the QVC pitch was the perfect platform on which to start.

Winners of this portion of the contest will be notified on April 27th, and if Jasmine is one of those chosen, the first thing that she plans to do is to contact her husband’s brother so that he can plan a family reunion in Chicago.

You can check out The Sack Rack on the web at www.thesackrack.com. Special discounts apply for multiple purchases, and The Sack Rack is also available for both wholesale and fundraising opportunities.

[via prbuzz.com]
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Brenda Thiel's daughter loves it when Avon boxes arrive at their Neenah home.

Together, the independent Avon consultant and her children sort out and then deliver the orders.

"My daughter loves to help me put the orders together, stamp the books and bag them," said Thiel, 26, of Neenah, who has been an Avon consultant for a little more than a year.

"She gets excited when we receive boxes at our door and, of course, loves to look through the toy section in the catalog."

Thiel said one of the reasons she became an Avon consultant was to have flexible hours and earn extra income.

"I love the fact that I can do a home-based business instead of getting another job," said Thiel, who is also a part-time support specialist.

"I really have no option right now with a school-aged child and rising day care expenses except to do a home-based business on the side. It is nice to have the option and flexibility to be able to make money a different way because accepting another position with set hours would be impossible for our family."

Home appeal

Working from home, having flexible hours and earning extra income are just some reasons many women get involved in direct-selling businesses they can operate from home such as Avon, Pampered Chef, Creative Memories, Mary Kay and Lia Sophia Jewelry.

"Prior to selling Avon, I had tried other home-based businesses and realized it wasn't a true fit for me, so I was very cautious about investing in another home based business," said Thiel.

But she saw a need for an Avon representative in the Fox Valley.

"Because of the flexibility, I can put my family first," said Thiel.

"Otherwise, I couldn't have seen myself getting involved with another home-based business."

Getting started

Starting the home business usually starts with attending a home show, ordering from a catalogue or having a one-on-one consultation.

Quiana Betchner, 29, of Greenville, has been a Pampered Chef consultant for more than three years. She had no problems joining a friend, who signed up as a consultant and wanted friends to be on her team.

Betchner said she and her husband felt the investment, $90 at the time, was worth it. Also, the stay-at-home mother of two saw the business as an opportunity to get out of the house.

"I started out just as a way to get some adult time," she said.

But she has such a good time doing it that "it didn't feel like a job to me."

"It's a lot more fun," added Betchner.

Sue Broeren, 30, of Appleton had also been to home parties.

"I had been to Lia Sophia Jewelry parties before and often considered getting into it because I didn't want to go back to a regular job someday," said the stay-at-home mother of three children.

"I hosted a party of my own and asked the adviser a lot of questions," she said.

"It was so simple to get started and the potential income and other perks were so great I decided to go for it."

Making albums was a hobby for Christine Cowell, 28, of Neenah.

"I loved doing it so much with the Creative Memories products," she said. "They helped me get things done quickly and easily, which was exactly what I needed with my busy schedule."

Becoming a consultant was the next logical step, even though she has busy family and work schedules.

"I thought it would be fun, but never imagined fitting it in with a full-time job," said Cowell, a mother of two who works full time at Kimberly-Clark Corp.

Many women pursuing home businesses range from stay-at-home mothers to those who balance full, even part-time, careers.

"About 10 percent of the representatives in my district are stay-at-home moms, but there are probably another 20 percent that work part or full time, but their ultimate goal is to be able to quit their job and stay home," said Barb Hoffman, an Avon district sales manager in Oshkosh.

Betchner likes the idea that she may not need to work outside the home again.

"That's my goal; to make it a career," she said of being with Pampered Chef. "I can work as much or as little as I want to."

Costs and training

The start-up cost for home businesses varies with each company. But it often includes supplies, products and training. As the women grow their business, they can earn free products or other incentives, like bonus checks, cruise trips or a car allowance.

Little to no business experience is needed in these kind of home businesses, said Broeren.

"Other people in the business are there to train you and coach you in all parts of the business," she said. "It's your business, but you're not left on your own to figure it out. There is great support and motivation."

Thiel agreed, noting Avon's online training makes it easy to be a sales representative.

"The training will take you through everything from how to have good customer service, how to process orders, how to record your receipts, how to navigate through the Web site, and a lot of information about the products," she said.

"Each session you complete, you will take an assessment test to test your knowledge on the lesson. You can print out a copy of the certificate to show completion of the course. From there you are all trained to become an independent sales representative."

It is also important to keep track of things like mileage and business expenses. And taxes must be filed, although many companies offer user-friendly forms or software to help the business owners out.

The businesswomen also find support and encouragement from family, friends, fellow consultants and others involved in their company.

"The district holds monthly meetings," said Thiel. "This is a very helpful group."

Cowell said the most important support has been from her family.

"My husband is extremely supportive despite how my business complicates our schedule and lives in general," she said. "Most of my family aren't actually customers, but they think it is neat that I am doing something I enjoy."

Finding balance

Running a home business requires a lot of juggling, said Cowell. To maintain a balance, Cowell sets limits, like holding one or two workshops a month and scheduling family activities first.

"As far as balancing with my full-time job, all the work is done in the evening for this business or on the weekends; when I have the time," she said.

Thiel has learned that to maintain a regular schedule, she needs to be disciplined and organized.

"Life is going to pull you in all kinds of directions, but you need to be disciplined on how you strategize your weekly routines and what is important," she said.

While it may take some work in the beginning of the home business, the time and effort are worth it in the end, said Cowell.

"Set goals for yourself, but realize that it will take work to achieve them," she said.

"It is a business, so work is required; although it is a lot of fun."

Broeren agreed.

"It's fun, it's rewarding and it's mine," she said. "It has boosted my self-confidence. I can be here for my kids. I have an excuse to get out. It's a wonderful opportunity any way you look at it."

[via thenorthwestern.com]

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Arizona Cart Retrieval Co

Despite alert store personnel, sophisticated anti-theft systems and other precautions, shopping carts seem to have lives of their own, disappearing like magic from Valley retailers.

Enter Tom Martinet, whose company, Arizona Cart Retrieval, operates every day of the year except Christmas to locate and return the carts to area businesses.

"I knew there was a cart problem," Martinet said, "but I didn't realize the extent of it until we started this service."

When Martinet began working in grocery management in the 1970s, cart theft wasn't much of a problem, he recalls. "We'd send a bagger over to the nearby apartment complex to pick up a cart or two," he said. "That was about it."

Things have changed.

In an average week, one of Martinet's contractors will have dispatched crews to round up and return close to 15,000 carts to Arizona retailers.

The retrieval service employs 18 flatbed trucks that serve more than 30 retailers and about 460 stores in the state. Clients include Fry's, Safeway, Albertsons, Wal-Mart, Family Dollar and Lowe's Home Improvement.

Martinet is philosophical about some customers' need to roll home with a private set of wheels.

"Households in certain areas buy a lot of groceries," he said. "They need a way to get them home."

Sometimes, cart-napping can even have health benefits.

"We've seen older people leaving the lot with their cart; at least they're getting a little exercise," he said. "Some of them are even using the cart as a walker. You wonder if they could make it without the cart."

Often, a single cart attracts others, Martinet adds. Recently, the company got a call from a landlord in Avondale. "He had evicted his tenant from the house and found 17 shopping carts."

"They were all in good shape; we just returned them to Wal-Mart."

Jim Oliver of OT Cart Service, a contractor for Arizona Cart Retrieval, is unflappable after 35 years in the business. Oliver said most folks are unperturbed about returning the carts.

"You get a few who have a temper, but most people realize they're not supposed to be in possession of them in the first place."

Oliver has found the carts used as unique home storage and decor solutions, too.

"People turn them on their side, lay a plywood top on it and use it for a dining room table. We've picked up carts that have been used to wheel out trash, sort the laundry, and do other household chores. They're pretty handy," he said.

Once captured, the carts are steam-cleaned or refurbished on-site using equipment loaded onto the flatbeds. Most of the repair work is limited to replacing handles and seat straps and welding wheels. Carts that can't be fixed are parted out.

A percentage of carts is retrieved from desert washes, alleys and other areas that serve as temporary homes for transients, but that number has remained steady over the years, Oliver said. "We haven't really seen an increase in the number of carts used by the homeless, especially if you compare Arizona to states like California," he adds.

Even the carts with anti-theft locking systems built into the cart's wheels are not a deterrent to a determined cart bandit.

"One guy rigged up a block of wood underneath the wheels with wire and tape. He had it sliding across the parking lot, just like a sled, and he got his groceries home that way," Oliver said. "It's kind of amazing the solutions people come up with."

Business can only continue to increase for the cart service, especially as the Valley becomes more congested. "In areas that are built up with apartment complexes, office buildings and condos, you're going to see this continue," Oliver said.

Fast-growing sections like Arrowhead are exceptions because much of the residential growth is confined to single-family homes.

The average steel shopping cart costs about $100. Custom styles, such as the plastic race car kiddie carts, cost $400 to replace. The firm works on a contract basis with retailers to retrieve carts.

[Via Arizona Business Gazette]

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Average American household spends $1,200 annually on gadgets

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A study conducted by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) has determined that the average American household spends approximately $1,200 annually on electronics products. The study, which also provides insight into the popularity of various kinds of consumer electronics products, was devised and conducted by CEA Market Research in February.

According to the study, televisions are the most popular consumer electronics product, and can be found in 92 percent of American households. HDTVs, which significantly increased in popularity this past year, can already be found in 25 percent of American households. Mobile phones, which are owned by 76 percent of American households, are also amongst the most common consumer electronics devices.

In the past year, the largest growth was seen in network hardware (e.g., wireless access points, routers) and digital video recorders, both of which increased by 8 percent. A quarter of American households now own a DVR and 30 percent own network hardware. Digital audio players (owned by 32 percent of American households) and digital cameras (owned by 62 percent of American households) also saw tremendous growth in the past year.

"Many of the top owned products have enjoyed mass-market saturation for years and will likely see growth based on upgrade and replacement sales," said CEA senior research analyst Elena Caudle. "Some of the more intriguing categories are those that still occupy niche markets, such as mobile CE devices like GPS systems and satellite radio, which have seen healthy growth in the past few years."

The study also determined that the average teen spends approximately half of their total discretionary income on consumer electronics products, and households with teenagers and children typically exceed the national average expenditure of $1,200 by up to $500, likely due to digital audio player and cell phone purchases.

The CEA's study does not segment the statistics into categories such as early adopters and technophiles like us. A quick survey of the staff here at Ars showed that almost all of us had surpassed the $1,200 figure by a good deal during 2006. It's not too difficult to do it: a cell phone upgrade, an iPod, a console, a handful of games, and a GPS unit is enough to push one past the national average. How close to the national average are you?

Average American household spends $1,200 annually on gadgets

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