By Mark Ladan
PARRY SOUND - People from all different walks of life come up with thousands of inventions each and every year - devices that the inventors believe will change the way society does things. However, most of these inventions are not even seen by the people whose lives would be changed by them.
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Photo supplied Susan Watkinson (left) and Jennifer Alves (right) are inventors of the Bumper Bonnet for toddlers. Also pictured are their children. |
The problem? Manufacturers or financiers do not see the potential that the inventor has seen. And after the inventor knocks on countless doors to sell the product, another potentially world-altering device goes on the scrap heap.
There are some inventions, however, that make it on the first try. Sliced bread and Trivial Pursuit to name just two. Now, here is the story of another such invention.
After the miracle of childbirth, many parents look forward to the next big step in their child's development, literally. When kids start walking, there are, of course, many more options for play and other activities. But when a child is just starting to walk, injuries can occur.Then the inevitable happens - baby falls down and goes boom!
That was one thing that Susan Watkinson, a Parry Sound resident, was facing on a continual basis with her third child, Corbin, when he was between eight and 14 months old in early 1997. The toddler was having balance problems and because of that suffered several bumps and bruises. Watkinson, 37, asked around, but could not find what she needed to protect her child.
"I didn't do anything about it at the time because he was supposed to be my last child," says Watkinson. "I knew it was just a phase he was going through, so we persevered to get through it."
A year later Watkinson had twins, and about three weeks later her sister, Jennifer Alves, had her first child. Several months passed, and during a phone conversation the sisters were comparing notes on the challenges they faced with their babies as they became more mobile.
During their brief phone conversation, the idea of the Bumper Bonnet, which is now a registered trademark, was born. Within 48 hours, Alves, 34, had a prototype made and was on her way to making more of the protective head gear for Watkinson's children.
After seeing the Bumper Bonnet that her sister put together, Watkinson's immediate thought was that they had to share it with other parents.
"We showed it to friends and family, and many of them suggested we had something really good here, and also told us to keep it quiet until we got some protection," says Alves. Right away they contacted a lawyer and got the ball rolling on design protection of their invention.
One year after the first prototype was made, the pair finally received design protection. Then they started what they thought would be a long process of finding a company that would manufacture the Bumper Bonnet. The search for a manufacturer was anything but long.
"I started looking at tags of soft cushion baby products that I had for my kids," says Alves. "But most of the products were made in Japan or Taiwan, and then I found one that was in Mississauga."
The company Alves called was Formelco, which is a division of Jolly Jumper. The company representative they spoke with, Russ Coey, was interested, so a meeting was arranged.
"We went down to see him, armed with a videotape of the kids using (the bonnet), and he got kind of excited," says Alves.
"I would say we were very interested," says Coey. "The sisters were very enthusiastic about their invention. It looked like a fun product that we could market."
Jolly Jumper receives up to ten calls per month from people who think they have come up with the next best thing for kids. What turned it for Watkinson and Alves was their enthusiasm and passion for the product, Coey says.
In 22 years that Coey has been in the business of children's products, this is only the second time that he has said yes to a product developed by a parent.
Watkinson and Alves have licensed Jolly Jumper to make and market the Bumper Bonnet. They were paid a lump sum at the start, and now get royalties on every Bumper Bonnet sold. They did not wish to comment on how much they are earning from sales of the padded hat.
The Bumper Bonnet has been available at Wal-Mart and Toys 'R' Us stores in Canada since July 2000. In the first year 5,000 units were sold at $14.99 each.
Sears Canada added the product to its fall/winter 2001 catalogue and it is available on a limited basis in the United States.
Coey says Jolly Jumper is seeing interest in the Bumper Bonnet from Central and South America, Australia and Scotland.
"It's been a bit of a slow start for the bonnet, but we're hoping that it will take off more over the next year or so," Coey says.
Jolly Jumper is also advance-marketing the Bumper Bonnet. An ad for it is included in Welcome Wagon kits that hospitals give out to new parents after their baby is born. The ad boasts that the product is endorsed by the Ontario Ministry of Health. Shortly after the Bumper Bonnet hit stores, Watkinson and Alves received a letter from then Health Minister Elizabeth Witmer congratulating them on their achievement.
"This is something that we never thought would happen in our lives," says Watkinson. "It was just something that came along.
"We ran with this idea that we had because it would benefit us. It's still a shock that we would be capable of inventing something, never mind having it in catalogues and stores. And there's nothing better than being able to develop a product, not just for kids, but for the protection of children."
Alves is quick to add her belief that this whole thing was fate.
"Because it just seemed to flow so easily, makes me think it was just supposed to happen," says Alves.
