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FEATURE

A MEASURE OF SUCCESS

Three Years Ago, Monte Mitchell was Just Another Inventor Struggling to Market his Product. Today, That Product is in Stores Nationwide.

By Mike Foley

Monte Mitchell is grinning. It's not the quick " Good Day" type of smile, but the deeply satisfied grin of a man who has seen his dream come true. With a successful product on the market and a nationally-known distributor behind him, Mitchell has seen seven years of struggle end in a victory that is both financially rewarding and deeply satisfying. "For years, it just kept dragging on and on and I wasn't sure it would happen," he recalls. "But now it's here on the shelf." Mitchell's product, Accu-Measure, first appeared in the Dream Merchant's Next Step column in October of 1997.

The product, a plastic telescoping measuring device that easily measures small, tight places with one hand, offers an advantage over standard measuring tapes. In addition, the device holds a built-in level and a pen holder (measurements can be written in dry erase marker anywhere on the stick).

Mitchell's odyssey with the idea began in February of 1993, when the Kansas City native found himself out of work. After taking on the role of "stay-at-home" father for his kids, Mitchell began focusing on home repairs but grew frustrated with the tape measures he was using. Inspired by the metal extension poles used by painters, he designed a device he called "The Measuring Stick," a telescoping stick which would extend to 72 inches and easily measure difficult places. After starting the patent process, he began showing it to interested friends and business people, which led to the Dream Merchant article in October of 1997.

"That article and a piece like it from the Kansas City Star were promotional tools for me," he explains. "I sent the articles and photos to everyone I could think of and always had copies with me when meeting with buyers or manufacturers."

Mitchell also collected letters from catalog houses, who promised to carry the product if it ever went into production. Although the articles and letters proved valuable when approaching the large hardware companies, Mitchell still wasn't able to secure a deal. Two of the largest, Stanley and Cooper, expressed interest initially, but cooled toward the device as time passed.

In the meantime, Mitchell developed a relationship with Dennis Milford, president of a local plastics manufacturing firm, which was currently making a plastic aquarium available in Wal-Mart stores. When Milford suggested Wal-Mart as a possible avenue for The Measuring Stick, Mitchell was initially reluctant.

"I didn't think they'd give me the time of day," he said. "But I called Wal-Mart headquarters and talked to a buyer who set up a meeting for me."

Mitchell was still unsure about how much power a buyer had, but went to the meeting, anyway.

"Right away, he said he wanted it," Mitchell recalls. "I found out that buyers have a lot of power. He told me he wanted the Measuring Stick and he stuck by that."

Mitchell subsequently struck a deal with Komelon USA, who agreed to manufacture the product for Wal-Mart. He says he's extremely pleased with the deal he received from both Wal-Mart and Komelon and especially with the companies' faith in his product.

"We had some initial production problems," he explains, "and the product failed in the Wal-Mart testing lab. I thought that would sink the ship, but both companies hung in, worked out the manufacturing bugs and retested. I was very pleased about that."

Reflecting on his long journey to success, Mitchell says he'd do at least one thing differently.

"I tended to put all my eggs in one basket," he says. "I thought the big hardware companies were my only chance, so I failed to see other markets. In that sense, I wasted a lot of time."

Mitchell hopes other entrepreneurs can avoid that mistake and cautions product developers to be realistic about their products.

"It's important not to give up on your dream, but to also be realistic about the idea. Always look for people who will give you honest feedback and then listen to that feedback. Don't ignore it--use it to make a better product."

That realistic approach served Mitchell well and the proof is in the result--a product now on shelves nationwide. For Monte Mitchell, that's a feeling difficult to describe.

"I saw it on the shelf and it was great," he says, smiling. "And it really doesn't matter if I sell one or a million. It's there. That's what's important to me. I got it there."

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