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About Comfy CatchTowards the end of 1994 our son Anthony, then aged around 15mths, refused point blank to wear the ‘Pelican’ bib that we offered him, saying things like, ‘ it was cold and that it hurt him’. Frankly, my wife Amanda & I could see his point, however, it was really useful to have a bib that helped to catch the mess; and one that you could place small pieces of fruit or finger sandwiches into, for him to feed himself.
I could see the ideal solution in my head, but when we tried to find a bib that was soft to wear and had the function of catching the falling food, there was nothing available on the market. So I decided to go ahead and put my idea down on paper; it combined the best features of both types of bib. These being the comfort of the terry towelling bib, and the catching function of the plastic trough bib. We had decided on a name for the bib, it seemed obvious to call it the ‘Comfy Catch’ bib.
Here is a copy of one of the early drawings of the bib.
Wording reads from top to bottom -1.Example of ribbon ties. 2. Cloth upper section. 3. Plastic lower section. 4. Lipped area
My initial attempts at putting together a few prototypes were very crude, however, we were very encouraged by the response we got from everyone who saw or tried the bib; they all thought it was fantastic, so simple and definitely a good idea and one they could identify with immediately. In fact parents wanted to know where they could buy one!
We were not, however, encouraged by the potential cost of producing the product. I had approached a UK based nursery products manufacturer, whose quote made it extremely unlikely that the bib would ever go into production.
Somewhat daunted by the production costs, I sat on the idea for a year or so, but spurred on by the thought that this was a good idea and that it should be brought to market, I decided, in 1996, to speak with a patent adviser about protecting our idea. It was suggested that we consider applying for a patent, and although we went down this track for a while, in 1998 we chose to proceed via the ‘Registered Design’ route, as this provided a longer period of protection of the Intellectual Property Rights.
It took a few more years, but early in 2001, I heard of a US company that had offices in the UK, who might be able to take my concept and market the idea over in the States, whilst still protecting my intellectual property rights. We signed an agreement for a two year exclusivity period; however, nothing came of that particular approach, just two more years lost!!
As we approached midway through 2003, I was more determined than ever to get something moving myself. I was able to link in to several manufacturers in China, via the UK Chinese Embassy web site; also, from one of their links, I discovered that there was a Chinese Liaison Director based at the Chamber of Commerce just up the road, in Coventry.
After a couple of meetings to discuss the possibility of trade with China, Mark Eaton, the Liaison Director, suggested I join the next trade mission to China, which was coming up shortly, in November 2003. He suggested I go over to establish face to face links with a specific textile manufacture that had expressed an interest in building a business relationship. At last I was taking things into my own hands, I was more than happy to go.
This marked the beginning of the process of getting the textile upper sections produced. However, it would prove to be a very lengthy process, and one that would not result in business being done with that particular company. Unfortunately, after a successful face to face meeting in Beijing, and following a year of emailing and the sending of samples and revised samples, the company just fell off the face of the earth; they ceased to trade or even, seemingly, exist!
This was very frustrating, particularly as things had been progressing so well with the plastic lower section. We had managed to secure the services of a pre-production plastics company called Dudley Associates, based in Lutterworth. They were very helpful and sympathetic to us, being a start up business. (That means they were kind enough to give us a break, by reducing their charges to a minimum, and in some instances, actually swallowing up some of the costs themselves.) We now owned the tooling that had been designed and manufactured for us, and could go into production of the plastic section at anytime.
In an attempt to get the textile portion produced at a price that would enable us to launch the bib at an acceptable price, we moved on to dealing with another manufacturer, this time one based in India.
In addition to getting the upper and lower sections produced, over the past six months we have had to design the packaging, printing, web site, bar code and stationary. We have had to set up a marketing strategy, send out press releases, arrange the product testing, liaise with trading standards, set up a limited company, register for vat, plus a whole lot more.
Then came time for our product launch at the BPA show held at the NEC in Birmingham, October 2006. Amanda and myself, found ourselves becoming very nervous, and to make things even more edgy, we found ourselves selected as one of the four finalists, out of hundreds of applicants, for the Concept 2006 Award. On the second day of the show, the announcement was made that we had come second! This was a great honour for us, and one that we took as reinforcement that we were on to a very good idea.
And so the story comes right up to date and we are now handling enquiries for our bibs from shops, chemists, supermarkets and the Local Health Authority.
Throughout this process we have been fortunate enough to have many companies adopt a very favourable attitude towards us as a start up business. In particular we would like to mention the generous support given by the following companies and personnel:-
All at Landor Print, for their tireless understanding of all our revisions. Mitch Parkin of March Design, for more designs than you can shake a stick at. Matthew Green, of the Grey Matter Group, for his inspired packaging concept. Andrew Soane, Georgia Kershaw for their input, Emma Waddell & Mick Davis for their wonderful cartoon & character designs. Our local Trading Standards Officer, Gail Rooke for her ongoing advice and guidance in all matters of safety, our Business Link office and all the many others who have shown a willingness to help a burgeoning new business.
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