From Gags to Riches
| November 23, 2016
Everything in the world had that first person who thought “I wonder what would happen if I…” and then went on to invent something unique. Some of these inventions are household names today like UGGs or the six-slice toaster. Others enjoy a wave of unexplained popularity for a short time — just enough time to make their inventors rich beyond their imaginations — while millions of other people think Seriously? Someone paid money for that?!
How about a peek throughout history to see some of these fad-tastic items?
DOGGLES
Inventor: Roni and Ken Di Lullo | Earnings: $3 million (in 2012 alone!)
It was a gorgeous day in California so Roni and Ken took their dog Midknight to a dog park and began playing Frisbee with him. The Di Lullos were disturbed to notice that Midknight was squinting in the sunlight and missing the Frisbee. Half-jokingly Roni put a pair of sports goggles on the dog and immediately he stopped squinting began catching the Frisbee like a pro and got many admiring comments from pet owners and dog walkers in the park (and most likely some strange looks from the other dogs!) The Di Lullos were surprised when other dog owners started requesting glasses for their dogs too but they willingly began ordering sports goggles and having them adjusted to better fit dogs — with a wide nose bridge and deep lens cup.
They’ve also since come up with shatterproof anti-fog and adjustable strap designs and even make Doggles with prescription lenses for dogs who have undergone cataract surgery or lens removal! Ken and Roni began selling Doggles from pet stores and boutiques for $16 to $20 a pair. By 2004 Doggles were on 4 500 store shelves in 16 countries!
Believe it or not vets say Doggles really are good for dogs’ eyes. Even the US military bought more than 1000 pairs for their service animals.
THE PET ROCK
Inventor: Gary Dahl | Earnings: $6 million (in just six months!)
One fine evening in 1975 Gary got together with some friends and they were complaining about their pets. One might have complained about how expensive dog food was another about how his cat destroyed his couch another that his pet always wanted to be walked right when he wanted to sit down. “My pet doesn’t cause me any trouble at all ” Gary told them.
“How’s that?” his friends wanted to know.
“I have a pet rock.”
His friends laughed and Gary decided to try to package his joke. He bought smooth Mexican beach stones for a penny each nestled them on hay (that cost him almost nothing) put them in a cardboard carrying case punched some air holes in the box and included a 32-page instruction manual on the care feeding and house training of Pet Rocks. It began “If when you remove the rock from its box it appears to be excited place it on some old newspapers. The rock will know what the paper is for and will require no further instruction. It will remain on the paper until you remove it.” It also instructed the new owner that their new pet could easily be trained to “sit” and “stay” but would need a little extra help from the trainer to “roll over.” Gary charged $4 per Pet Rock and sold over 1.5 million in six months!
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