8 Eyewear: From Idea, to Launch, to Growth (And Quitting the Job)

[Vick]

It's been 1 year this month since I've started this project.

And I still haven't even officially sold anything yet.

Crazy.

 

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[RHL]

A poor man's patent.

Not like a rich man's patent would mean jack in China. This is probably more effective.

It's been 1 year this month since I've started this project.
And I still haven't even officially sold anything yet.

Any bootstrapping opportunities associated with it? I'm always looking for little ways to pick up weekend cash with my fastlane materials as I build out.

 

[Vick]

Any bootstrapping opportunities associated with it? I'm always looking for little ways to pick up weekend cash with my fastlane materials as I build out.

Not sure I understand the question.

I guess you can say I bootstrapped this project, I first scrounged together $8,000 then found out it was actually double that. So I had to scrounge another $8,000.

My father was more then willing to help me, after he seen my Business Model and the market interest tests I did. Telling him I reserved $18,000 in pre-orders was the clincher.

 

[RHL]

Like, for example (very pie-in-the-sky), say your fastlane had something to do with printing banners to advertise for your new SEO company. Could you rent those printing tools out to other companies when they weren't working for you and recover capital? Say you need a backhoe for a contracting business. Could you rent it anytime you're guys aren't using it?

That's what I mean. Little, non-fastlane ways to infuse cash into the process using the kit you already have.

 

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[mayana]

Like, for example (very pie-in-the-sky), say your fastlane had something to do with printing banners to advertise for your new SEO company. Could you rent those printing tools out to other companies when they weren't working for you and recover capital? Say you need a backhoe for a contracting business. Could you rent it anytime you're guys aren't using it?
That's what I mean. Little, non-fastlane ways to infuse cash into the process using the kit you already have.

I like that kind of thinking. I was just talking to my husband yesterday about this type of thing. I don't know if this is common practice, but a local roofing company rents out their dumpsters when they aren't slammed with roofing jobs (i.e. when there is no storm). It's just a fail-safe to make sure they can always cover their overhead during slow times.

Maybe there are other assets (physical, intellectual, systems, etc) that you've acquired that you could lease or sell to help make it through to your first sale.

Great job hanging in there - keep it up!

 

[Vick]

ya i see what she means now.

i don't really have any assets to rent. not really interested in making money while i wait.

my focus during the wait is on educating myself. preparing. designing other models. and testing.

the first sale will come in time.

i guess my statement above, about '1 year and no sales' was a little ambiguous.

the fact that i have no sales hasn't exasperated my objective/motivation.

i was merely making an observation on my adherence to this project.

1 year and no sales is a long time to dedicate to 1 idea.

which i would not recommend.

 

[biophase]

Not like a rich man's patent would mean jack in China. This is probably more effective.

You can get a China patent instead of a US patent.

 

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[MitchC]

I haven't read the thread yet, will start now, however if you have time Vick could you please answer a couple of questions, if they are answered in the thread just say If not that's fine, I can do my own research but I would really appreciate the first hand experience.

I have a new product idea which solves a need that has never been solved before, I am looking to make it out of either plastic or metal, but seeing as you have made a plastic mold product I ask for your advice about that.

I am in the process of getting 3d printable prototype designs done, I will be taking you advice and incorporating a huge logo on my product, is this how you did prototyping? Is there a better way? Could you PM me your 3d cad drawer if you used one?

How long, and how much does it cost for tooling? what was the MOQ? Could you recommend me the company you used?

With packaging, and if I were to add another product with this in a package (generic $1 Chinese item), does the company who does the mold source all this and sell it ready to sell, or do I sort that myself?

You say a year and no sales, I guess I'll find out after reading the thread (19 pages :/), is this because that's how long it takes to get something made? Surely not?

If there's any other advice you have I'd really appreciate it I'm mostly just interested in the time-frames, costs and process as I really want to get this going quickly and smoothly, it's an exciting idea.

Possibly some very stupid questions but since you have been through it first hand it doesn't hurt to ask. Thanks again Vick

 

[LibertyForMe]

I haven't read the thread yet, will start now, however if you have time Vick could you please answer a couple of questions, if they are answered in the thread just say If not that's fine, I can do my own research but I would really appreciate the first hand experience.

Dude. Read the thread. Its not that big. Maybe it would answer your questions and bring up new questions you should ask instead. Its not fair to not read the thread to save your time only to ask loads of questions and be a drain on Vick's time.

 

[Vick]

I am in the process of getting 3d printable prototype designs done, I will be taking you advice and incorporating a huge logo on my product, is this how you did prototyping?

No, I stumbled across this. I wanted my Logo on the frames as part of the design aspect.
Also, I did my own prototyping with a 3d printer I bought, until I realized that I needed people who were more qualified to do it right.
If you go through the thread, you'll see the progression.

Is there a better way?

Prototypes don't have to look good. It just has to work. Do the prototyping yourself. With whatever materials you can get your hands on, for as cheap as possible. Then, after it works, proceed to find manufacturer.

Could you PM me your 3d cad drawer if you used one?

I'm a 3D Game Artist by trade, so I did all the 3D modeling myself. But I use 3D modeling programs like Maya. I'm not familiar with CAD/engineering software, which is needed for making molds. My manufacturer did all the CAD work on there end, based off the 3d models I made. Basically I just sent them images, and they made the CAD model.

How long, and how much does it cost for tooling? what was the MOQ? Could you recommend me the company you used?

Price will vary based on the product obviously, but it's cheaper then you would think. The intial mold cost will be alot, somewhere in the 3,000 - 6,000 range, maybe less, again, depends on your product. Time wise, again, depends, maybe somewhere in the range of 3-8 months. MOQ can always be negotiated, just be honest with potential suppliers and tell them you will order much larger production runs in the future, if they will allow you a small first run. Don't expect to get anything below 1,000 units. Don't be greedy.

I use a Sunglasses manufacturer. Find a manufacturer in your Niche. There a dime a dozen. Do your research THOROUGHLY on your prospects! Email companies that look like good fits, see who replies the fastest, ask them to send samples, compare their quality, see who ships the fastest, speaks English better, politeness, etc. be polite and clear with your emails.

I typed 'sunglasses manufacturer' in Google and followed the path.

Starting the process can be confusing, like a puzzle laid out in front of you.

Start with 1 piece, and the rest will come together.

With packaging, and if I were to add another product with this in a package (generic $1 Chinese item), does the company who does the mold source all this and sell it ready to sell, or do I sort that myself?

My manufacturer does the packaging as well. You will find this true for most manufacturers over seas. Not sure about packaging something else with it, you'll have to ask them.

You say a year and no sales, I guess I'll find out after reading the thread (19 pages :/), is this because that's how long it takes to get something made? Surely not?

No, I could have been selling about 6 months ago, if I went straight to overseas manufactures. I took a different route at the beginning, by trying to do everything myself. That's fine for prototyping, but not for making a final consumer product. I wasted a lot of time figuring out how not to make sunglasses, I guess it wasn't wasted time, just unnecessary time. Also, I had a different idea at the beginning that morphed over time. You'll find that will happen through your prototype phase. Don't be mad at the process, embrace the change. Good things come of it.

If there's any other advice you have I'd really appreciate it I'm mostly just interested in the time-frames, costs and process as I really want to get this going quickly and smoothly, it's an exciting idea.

Advice?

Lay the first piece of the puzzle. And things become clearer and clearer as you progress.

Eventually you'll have your puzzle completed.

And then hopefully people will pay you for it.

Good luck

 

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[Vick]

Dude. Read the thread. Its not that big. Maybe it would answer your questions and bring up new questions you should ask instead. Its not fair to not read the thread to save your time only to ask loads of questions and be a drain on Vick's time.

lol, usually I would've sent him here > https://www.google.com/

but, I'm in a good mood today.

I was once where he was. so i get it.

but it's much more important to figure things out for yourself.

he'll get that soon.

 

[Bigguns50]

@Vick....I'm looking for a U.S. Patent Attorney. Did you end up going this route ?
I just have a question that I can't find anywhere, and I'm pretty good at finding stuff, so figured maybe I could get a free answer.

 

[Vick]

@Vick....I'm looking for a U.S. Patent Attorney. Did you end up going this route ?
I just have a question that I can't find anywhere, and I'm pretty good at finding stuff, so figured maybe I could get a free answer.

No. I haven't pursued that path yet. No point right now.

tbh I'm not that interested in patents anymore.

There kinda worthless, if you don't have the money to back it up.

If someone steals my shit.

I'll just make something better.

 

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[Vick]

another V.2 concept

NOT final. just a concept.

thoughts ? yay or nay ?

cheers

 

[TJPB]

I like the other designs better but that's not to say these don't have merit. They sorta remind me of those big black shades that old guys wear over their real glasses.

PS: I still don't see brown

 

[Eskil]

The top one is my fav. Good job man.

 

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[TopChef]

Hmm. I kinda like the last model better myself. The thinner one, though it is hard to tell unless I see it on a face and compare the two.

Regarding the color scheme. I love the high contrast #3 and #4.

 

[GravyBoat]

[/QUOTE]thoughts ? yay or nay ?[/QUOTE]

Oooh shit, those are AWESOME. Best ones yet if you ask me. The last grey one is crazy, as is the yellow one. I'm not kidding man, I will be first in line for those. Consider this a pre-order.

 

[Determined2012]

WOW!

I just spent a few hours reading your whole thread, and taking notes, and checking stuff on google. This thread was awesome! THE PROCESS! I hate it because you just want the physical product to be ready once you sort it out. It takes forever.

I am feeling inspired to finally upload my progress thread to the forum. I have been updating it since 1 January in a Microsoft word file.

I have taken away soooooooooooo much value from your thread- surely more than I have taken from other threads lately. Because I am going through all of these same things in my own journey. Thank you for taking the time to post this.

The one MAIN thing that I have taken away from your progress thread, and Likwid's thread is that when the people on this forum see you making the efforts they will support you and offer to help you with all type of stuff to assist you in being able to reach out for your goals and grab them. Which I love so much, and hope that I will experience some of the same if needed once my thread is posted.

As a female I think all of the glasses look like ski and or sport glasses...Are these daily wear (regular) sunglasses?

I have particularly enjoyed reading all your commentary and remarks about how the Chinese are conducting business with you- Seeing first hand how they do things on location in their Chinese factories is something I will NEVER forget, and as long as I can help it I will never let them manufacture ANYTHING for me. I may order stuff already made- if needed- (a packaging stuff, maybe) but as far as going all the way with them NO WAY!

Hopefully the 1st production run will be ready by Fathers Day, in June? As usual, I am going to put in the IG (Instagram) plug- I can see your item doing good on there, you will need a lot of people wearing them though, in fun, luxury lifestyle locations---vacations mainly, and doing cool sport stuff (jet skiing, volley ball on the beach, etc.).

This forum is teaching me so much about people, business, life, and myself. I am just literally blown away every time I read posts by everyone here.

Keep pushing, and your time will come.

Are you going to have a foundation story?

Rep+++

 

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[wilddog]

Since it was a lovely day in Toronto on Sunday I decided to dust off and setup all my cycling gear. One of my most important pieces are my sunglasses, which are designed to grip to the face and mine have interchangeable lenses. I've noticed with cycling glasses 2 price points, cheap ($75) and expensive ($300). I wonder if you could fill the price gap in the middle? Why did I think of your brand? Because the 8 looks like a pair of bicycle wheels, which I think would be a great advertising angle.

 

[Vick]

I like the other designs better but that's not to say these don't have merit. They sorta remind me of those big black shades that old guys wear over their real glasses.

PS: I still don't see brown

thanks for the feedback ya i was goin for a chunkier look for the V.2 model. I might slim them down a tad. But I wanted these to be a bit thicker looking. thanks again. I'll have a Desert version of the V.1 and V.2 models later on. not many people scream for brown.

The top one is my fav. Good job man.

Thanks bud

Hmm. I kinda like the last model better myself. The thinner one, though it is hard to tell unless I see it on a face and compare the two.

Regarding the color scheme. I love the high contrast #3 and #4.

Thanks for the feedback they actually look pretty cool on a head, i'll upload some renders with a digital head soon. i will be tweaking a few things as well.

thoughts ? yay or nay ?[/QUOTE]

Oooh shit, those are AWESOME. Best ones yet if you ask me. The last grey one is crazy, as is the yellow one. I'm not kidding man, I will be first in line for those. Consider this a pre-order.[/quote]

lol thanks bud this design isn't a final, it will probably be tweaked slightly over the months. I did want the V.2 to have a chunkier look, but I think I pushed that too far, now that I'm looking at them with a fresh eye, might slim them down a tad. anyway, thanks for the feedback, appreciate it.

 

[Vick]

WOW!

I just spent a few hours reading your whole thread, and taking notes, and checking stuff on google. This thread was awesome! THE PROCESS! I hate it because you just want the physical product to be ready once you sort it out. It takes forever.

I am feeling inspired to finally upload my progress thread to the forum. I have been updating it since 1 January in a Microsoft word file.

I have taken away soooooooooooo much value from your thread- surely more than I have taken from other threads lately. Because I am going through all of these same things in my own journey. Thank you for taking the time to post this.

The one MAIN thing that I have taken away from your progress thread, and Likwid's thread is that when the people on this forum see you making the efforts they will support you and offer to help you with all type of stuff to assist you in being able to reach out for your goals and grab them. Which I love so much, and hope that I will experience some of the same if needed once my thread is posted.

As a female I think all of the glasses look like ski and or sport glasses...Are these daily wear (regular) sunglasses?

I have particularly enjoyed reading all your commentary and remarks about how the Chinese are conducting business with you- Seeing first hand how they do things on location in their Chinese factories is something I will NEVER forget, and as long as I can help it I will never let them manufacture ANYTHING for me. I may order stuff already made- if needed- (a packaging stuff, maybe) but as far as going all the way with them NO WAY!

Hopefully the 1st production run will be ready by Fathers Day, in June? As usual, I am going to put in the IG (Instagram) plug- I can see your item doing good on there, you will need a lot of people wearing them though, in fun, luxury lifestyle locations---vacations mainly, and doing cool sport stuff (jet skiing, volley ball on the beach, etc.).

This forum is teaching me so much about people, business, life, and myself. I am just literally blown away every time I read posts by everyone here.

Keep pushing, and your time will come.

Are you going to have a foundation story?

Rep+++

Thanks, glad you like the thread

Yes, they are a daily wear sunglasses, much like an Oakley shade would be. I'm just going for a different look, a chunkier, edgier design, with sharp angles, etc.

Foundation story? you mean the story of the product?

I'm not too sure. There's not much of a story around my product. I wanted to make sunglasses, so I did, and then there's the old original version that I tried, not too sure people wanna know that. The story isn't something too exciting. Not sure how I'm gonna approach that yet.

 

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[Vick]

Since it was a lovely day in Toronto on Sunday I decided to dust off and setup all my cycling gear. One of my most important pieces are my sunglasses, which are designed to grip to the face and mine have interchangeable lenses. I've noticed with cycling glasses 2 price points, cheap ($75) and expensive ($300). I wonder if you could fill the price gap in the middle? Why did I think of your brand? Because the 8 looks like a pair of bicycle wheels, which I think would be a great advertising angle.

Well, they will be priced between $150 - $170 still haven't decided yet. I will make that final call once I see the product. Which is about 2 weeks away.

I've noticed cyclists usually use a certain type of frame. Like these below

Maybe I can market to that crowd. I will try. But I designed mine to be a Lifestyle brand, to wear anywhere. They are sports shades, but I wanted them to be an everyday pair of shades more so.

thanks for the comment cheers.

 

[Bigguns50]

Love the style and the contrasting colors.

I'd say...have molds made, make a bunch, throw them out there and see if people will buy them. But then...it's not MY money !

I think it's hard to predict what styles of anything will sell. People get paid big bucks to try and figure this out. So I guess I wouldn't sweat it too much...you always get great feedback from this forum.

I have always had a good 'feel' for what Americans are into, will want, trends, etc. We are ready for a new brand. We want something different and we don't want some girly looking men's glasses.

I stand by my post waaaay back that your glasses will be a huge hit....100,000,000 people just need to know about them !

 

[Vick]

Love the style and the contrasting colors.

I'd say...have molds made, make a bunch, throw them out there and see if people will buy them. But then...it's not MY money !

I think it's hard to predict what styles of anything will sell. People get paid big bucks to try and figure this out. So I guess I wouldn't sweat it too much...you always get great feedback from this forum.

I have always had a good 'feel' for what Americans are into, will want, trends, etc. We are ready for a new brand. We want something different and we don't want some girly looking men's glasses.

I stand by my post waaaay back that your glasses will be a huge hit....100,000,000 people just need to know about them !

lol thanks.

before I go to production (molds) the design will be tested on Facebook first. by using ads. If the want is there. then I'll make the commitment. As I said though, this design will slightly morph over time, just as the V.1 did.

thanks again bud

 

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[DeletedUser12]

I like both versions, and maybe it's just me but by naming them Version 1 and Version 2 it makes it seem like V1 is old/outdated. Why would I want Version 1 of anything if there is a 2?

 

[Vick]

I like both versions, and maybe it's just me but by naming them Version 1 and Version 2 it makes it seem like V1 is old/outdated. Why would I want Version 1 of anything if there is a 2?

The V is the initial of my last name.

and 1 is just the model number.

V1, V2, V3, V4, V5, V6, etc, are not versions. Its simply the naming method I wanted to use for the names of different models. Instead of giving them names like Fuel Cell, Batwolf, Gascan, Hijinx, Oil Rig, etc. I choose a more abstract approach. I thought it sounded kinda cool as well. And the letter V makes a great shape.

I also like the sense of continuity as well, once I have more designs in the future, the brand will meld together nicely.

Also, over time, I'll be going back and updating the V1, V2, V3, V4, etc, when the designs get dated.

 

[PeteLife]

I like both versions, and maybe it's just me but by naming them Version 1 and Version 2 it makes it seem like V1 is old/outdated. Why would I want Version 1 of anything if there is a 2?

The V is the initial of my last name.
and 1 is just the model number.

I have to agree with Johnny on this one. We know that the V doesn't mean version, but no one else does. So its kinda off putting to have the line be V1 .... V10 etc ...there is no way Im going to a store and buy V1 of anything, if there is a V2 right next to it. Even if I somehow prefer V1 over V2, the mind is set to subconsciously desire the newest and hottest thing. As soon as V2 is launched you will see an instant drop in demand for V1. Whereas, If you name it something like ICE, METEOR, GALAXY, XXXX etc. or whatever, its just another name and another style. Also you will have a harder time getting stores to carry a V1 of anything if you have a V2, stores want the latest ... its the perception that counts in this case.

 

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[snowbank]

I think I've probably said this before, but those designs(still) look really good.

 

[Vick]

I have to agree with Johnny on this one. We know that the V doesn't mean version, but no one else does. So its kinda off putting to have the line be V1 .... V10 etc ...there is no way Im going to a store and buy V1 of anything, if there is a V2 right next to it. Even if I somehow prefer V1 over V2, the mind is set to subconsciously desire the newest and hottest thing. As soon as V2 is launched you will see an instant drop in demand for V1. Whereas, If you name it something like ICE, METEOR, GALAXY, XXXX etc. or whatever, its just another name and another style. Also you will have a harder time getting stores to carry a V1 of anything if you have a V2, stores want the latest ... its the perception that counts in this case.

ya maybe. I see what you guys mean. I don't think I'll have trouble with that. I guess time will tell.

do you feel the same in this case? > http://www.gloryfy.com/en/shades/11...&showProductGroup=1&sub=Sport&showOverview=ok