This may be the perfect crowd to ask the question.
I've got an idea for a new cigar cutter, but at the moment it's still just an idea. Do I need to get a patent before going the VC route and taking it to the masses?
We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It's the best deal man has ever made. -M. Acklam
Posts: 1031 | Location: New England | Registered: August 03, 2007
YES!!!! For God sake....get a patent! Without one, anyone that sees your design can get one and swipe your idea and make it their own. Always get a patent before showing it to an investory, manufacturer or fabricator. I wouldn't show it to anyone unless it was ABSOLUTELY necessary.
---------- Back by request:
Mom: "Twenty dollars for a cigar?!?! Why don't you just set fire to a $20 bill?"
Response: "Get a $20 bill to taste like a Davidoff and I'll light my entire paycheck on fire!"
Posts: 1374 | Location: Medford, NY | Registered: July 18, 2007
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE GET A PATENT. Make sure you go w/a reliable company, and as a law student, I would advise you to seek the help with the formal process from an attorney in your area.
Make sure you approach the process with well documented/and well laid out plans so that there is no way someone can make your product their own as the EVP said--if you don't describe it to a 'T' a company can basically take your design and list the element that you forgot and it is theirs. I wish you the best of luck on it.
There's a reason I switched my college major from Mechanical Engineering to Finance - I need to get from the idea phase to the plans/prototype stage. Once I make that leap, I'll go the patent route first and then on to the financial bubbas.
Csmithnj - revenue potential; good question. My thought is to keep the price low (below $10-$15) and hope that the unique design will spur interest. To be honest, I'd get a huge kick just getting it patented and selling one or two - of course, if Joe Consumer wanted to buy a million of the things, I certainly wouldn't mind that either
We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It's the best deal man has ever made. -M. Acklam
Posts: 1031 | Location: New England | Registered: August 03, 2007
Originally posted by SubChop: Csmithnj - revenue potential; good question. My thought is to keep the price low (below $10-$15) and hope that the unique design will spur interest. To be honest, I'd get a huge kick just getting it patented and selling one or two - of course, if Joe Consumer wanted to buy a million of the things, I certainly wouldn't mind that either
$10-15 a pop would need to sell alot to generate a significant amount of revenue and profit (don't know what your cost basis would be) to attract VC. Maybe smaller angel investors that typically make lower dollar investments.
Price wise, if it's unique enough, $10-15 may be too low. Look at Palio and others that charge more.
Have you put a business plan together? Market, costs, revenues, marketing, production, . . .
Is it something that will be made in the U.S. or overseas? What type of production is needed to make Overseas production viable?
How will you get it into the consumers hands? Can you team with cigar distribution companies? But then you'll be paying them. If you self distribute, that's a lot of work to hit all the small shops. What about the big boys like JRs? Can you meet Lew's price and quantity demands?
Always word of mouth by sending us FREE cutters.
Is it portable or a table top cutter? What's the demand for each?
So many questions.
One of the first things I'd do is figure out whether its financially viable.
B.A.S.E. Secretary and #0013 <(0)> R.O.C.A #14 Foreign Affairs Minister - BS
Originally posted by Chipster52284: If you get a million people to spend $1, you're a millionaire.
If you get half a million to spend $2, you're a millionaire.
It wouldn't need to be a $50 cutter, just a new appeal that a decent crowd would spend a little money on.
Not exactly.
If 500K people buy your $2 cutter, you have "grossed" $1 mil.
If after all expenses (material, production, taxes, rents, interest on loans, blah blah) the unit has a cost of $1.40, your net profit would be $300K Not bad, but hardly a millionaire.
Sorry to be so picky.
RW
When your bulldog barks and your canary sings, You're out there with winners.. It's good to be King.
Originally posted by SubChop: Csmithnj - revenue potential; good question. My thought is to keep the price low (below $10-$15) and hope that the unique design will spur interest. To be honest, I'd get a huge kick just getting it patented and selling one or two - of course, if Joe Consumer wanted to buy a million of the things, I certainly wouldn't mind that either
$10-15 a pop would need to sell alot to generate a significant amount of revenue and profit (don't know what your cost basis would be) to attract VC. Maybe smaller angel investors that typically make lower dollar investments.
Price wise, if it's unique enough, $10-15 may be too low. Look at Palio and others that charge more.
Have you put a business plan together? Market, costs, revenues, marketing, production, . . .
Is it something that will be made in the U.S. or overseas? What type of production is needed to make Overseas production viable?
How will you get it into the consumers hands? Can you team with cigar distribution companies? But then you'll be paying them. If you self distribute, that's a lot of work to hit all the small shops. What about the big boys like JRs? Can you meet Lew's price and quantity demands?
Always word of mouth by sending us FREE cutters.
Is it portable or a table top cutter? What's the demand for each?
So many questions.
One of the first things I'd do is figure out whether its financially viable.
Amen, Brother!
However, back to the original question. Get the patent so as to protect your idea....then float it to gauge the market interest (this site and these people might be a good sounding board). Then evaluate cost vs market (volume). What GP% do you need to have to clear an acceptable operating profit? Will the market bare this? What about reocurring sales? As csmithj said....SO many questions....
RW
When your bulldog barks and your canary sings, You're out there with winners.. It's good to be King.
Well, given the responses on the business side, does anyone have any mechanical engineering expertise to be able to draft a patentable drawing or even a working model? If so, perhaps we could enter into an arrangement............
We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It's the best deal man has ever made. -M. Acklam
Posts: 1031 | Location: New England | Registered: August 03, 2007
That college major switch I mentioned earlier occurred almost 25 years ago
I'm currently assigned to a joint DoD command doing contract management work in the BAE Systems plant - when I'm not deployed.
When I am deployed, it's to oversee KBR in their performance of the service contract that provides all the basic life support for our troops in all the best "garden spots". Recently returned from my last one (at least while on active duty - we'll see what my next career brings) before I retire next June. Maybe then I'll have more time to devote to this "invention".
We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It's the best deal man has ever made. -M. Acklam
Posts: 1031 | Location: New England | Registered: August 03, 2007
