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I would love to hear about your first invention/product and your experience with regards to how it was conceived, the need, design, patenting, licensing, operations, or manufacturing; and any other "lessons learned" you can share.
Background of Product
Back in the 90's I was part of a group that bought/built stand alone golf driving ranges/entertainment centers. At the time the golf was becoming quite popular, but development had also returned. Many urban and close-in suburban driving ranges, although very successful, couldn't compete with the returns that development provided, and were sold off.
The idea came to me when we found an ideal site owned by the local utility company. The demographics were ideal...25k within 5 mile radius, high median income for area (golfers), next to the 405 freeway (car trip counts out of this world) and because the utility chose to land lease the site, our only competition would non capital intensive uses such as outdoor storage facility/landscape centers/contractor yards,the lease terms were very good. Our problem however was that in order to obtain our conditional use permit we needed to use part of the parking lot next to our property (State ride sharing lot ). We thought this would be a no-brainier, but as luck would have it the State was planning on using the excess areas of the lot for future Cal trans equipment. No luck.
Therefore, we had a site that an absolutely incredible site, in one of the most affluent, dense areas of Southern California, abutting the 405. But, it was only 350 wide X 1200 feet, the standard dimension for a driving range, minus any area for support operations: concessions/parking/restrooms.
Therefore, in accordance with Fastlane principles, a solution to a need was conceived...
The Elevated Golf Driving Range
A Golf Driving range where the surface onto which you hit the balls was not the on-grade turf but netting raised above the ground so as to allow use of the entire area of the range (minus the tee boxes and various supports for the netting). This area could be used for parking, range support functions, or other ancillary profit centers namely; bumper boats, slick tracks, mini golf,etc.
My experience/advice
Don't play hardball on your first product.
If it requires significant capital and you don't have it, cut a favorable deal on the licensing. If you don't cut a deal and you get usurped, your day in court costs a lot more than you think.
Don't be short sighted, if you can create one great idea you can do it again. Use it as a spring board to finance the the process of being a creator.
Don't be a statistic; another jackass that thinks he's invented the new bread slicing machine.
My Invention Follies:
Background of Product
Back in the 90's I was part of a group that bought/built stand alone golf driving ranges/entertainment centers. At the time the golf was becoming quite popular, but development had also returned. Many urban and close-in suburban driving ranges, although very successful, couldn't compete with the returns that development provided, and were sold off.
The idea came to me when we found an ideal site owned by the local utility company. The demographics were ideal...25k within 5 mile radius, high median income for area (golfers), next to the 405 freeway (car trip counts out of this world) and because the utility chose to land lease the site, our only competition would non capital intensive uses such as outdoor storage facility/landscape centers/contractor yards,the lease terms were very good. Our problem however was that in order to obtain our conditional use permit we needed to use part of the parking lot next to our property (State ride sharing lot ). We thought this would be a no-brainier, but as luck would have it the State was planning on using the excess areas of the lot for future Cal trans equipment. No luck.
Therefore, we had a site that an absolutely incredible site, in one of the most affluent, dense areas of Southern California, abutting the 405. But, it was only 350 wide X 1200 feet, the standard dimension for a driving range, minus any area for support operations: concessions/parking/restrooms.
Therefore, in accordance with Fastlane principles, a solution to a need was conceived...
The Elevated Golf Driving Range
A Golf Driving range where the surface onto which you hit the balls was not the on-grade turf but netting raised above the ground so as to allow use of the entire area of the range (minus the tee boxes and various supports for the netting). This area could be used for parking, range support functions, or other ancillary profit centers namely; bumper boats, slick tracks, mini golf,etc.
My experience/advice
Don't play hardball on your first product.
If it requires significant capital and you don't have it, cut a favorable deal on the licensing. If you don't cut a deal and you get usurped, your day in court costs a lot more than you think.
Don't be short sighted, if you can create one great idea you can do it again. Use it as a spring board to finance the the process of being a creator.
Don't be a statistic; another jackass that thinks he's invented the new bread slicing machine.
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