The nation’s leading retailer of automotive replacement parts and accessories is now carrying several auto interior products in outstanDing packaging. AutoZone, which has more than 4,200 stores in the US, Puerto Rico, and Mexico, is selling the products in packaging we created for Comfort Products’ Relaxzen brand. They soon will be added to the growing list of product pages on Davison.com!

“The packaging is 100% homegrown design,” said the corporate design manager. The senior graphic designer created the design with the blue color scheme and checkerboard, which is now the standard Relaxzen automotive brand look. The cool-looking packaging with the Davison “D” will go on all products in the line sold in stores other than Walmart (we created different Relaxzen packaging for Walmart according to the mega retailer’s specifications).
 
“Anywhere they sell those items besides Walmart they’ll be in that blue,” said the design manager.

In addition, Comfort Products had another presentation with AutoZone, in which they showed 26 other items in our packaging – one of them, an over the seat storage accessory, is also our product.

“We’ve been doing the (Comfort Products) packaging all this time; now we’re getting to where we’re developing products,” said the design manager.

All the items presented are cushions or storage accessories for auto interiors. The presentation included some of the most popular Comfort Products items that are selling in Walmart, plus some that are new to the marketplace.

Last year, the corporation presented 13-14 products to AutoZone and the retailer picked up 4-5. The design manager is hopeful we’ll have another good result from the large presentation. “I think we’ll pick up a good number.”

Exciting things are in the works as a result of our corporate brainstorming session with Health Enterprises and CVS not too long ago. Of the 20+ products we presented to the retailer at the phone / Internet conference, CVS showed serious interest in moving forward on five and adding them to their line.

“CVS is huge,” said Dan Simbeck, VP of Licensing. “If we can build that bridge, the possibilities are absolutely endless.”

Such a deal, if it goes through, would be “game changing,” with huge volume ordered for 7,000 stores.

At the meeting, Mr. Davison, Pete Meier, Jason Rogge, Casey Tustin, Matt Alwine and Dan brainstormed and reviewed products with the HE rep and CVS buyers. The direct communication cut the normal time frame for re-designs from about 6 weeks down to 2 weeks.

“The buyers really opened up with the phone call” and gave direct feedback on the HE-licensed products, Dan said.

“That’s pretty awesome, to be able to get the actual decision maker on the phone,” said Jason Rogge, corporate creative coach. “You don’t have to worry about other people’s opinions getting in the way.”

The buyers asked for some minor changes; the design team created new virtuals based on their feedback, along with new drawings, and re-presented the products 2-3 weeks ago.

“They certainly seemed to be enthusiastic,” said Jason, who thinks there’s a good chance they’ll move forward on all the products.

The five are a “nice little mix” of products in the wellness / first aid category: Happy Toppers, Pedi Clean and Manicure Multitool are all client projects; Therapod and Pedicare are corporate.

Several of the projects have been in the works for years. Thank you to all on the corporate and client design teams, as well as those in other departments, who worked on getting the products to this stage. Great job, everyone!

Our Meatball Baker is still going strong — the innovative bakeware that we designed for our client, Jean, is in the new Spring issue of Harriet Carter. Check it out!

The long wait is over — the new “Davison – Building Ideas into Products” brochure is completed and ready. The new brochure ties readers into history by focusing on how “everyday people” changed the world with their ideas, including Mr. Davison, who invented a new method of bringing ideas to life.

“It’s a good upgrade and tells our story,” Mr. Davison said. “I am looking forward to hearing what our clients think.”

The 2010 brochure also helps to forge in the mind of the consumer that we build ideas here, and that is our unique space in the marketplace. It will be available in print as well as through our “free information page” on Davison.com. So, check it out!

Flip through the book online!

Six more candle products in Metro Design’s Bella Grace line have hit the stores, for a total of 13! All the packaging we created for the line is now in stores, said our senior category director, who shared the good news from Metro. “They’re pleased with the results; they got good feedback from the companies.”

The new products are: Ball Candle, LED Tealight Sconce, Oval Meditation Garden, Square Meditation Garden, S-Shaped Sconce, and Scrolled Wall Sconce. Click into these images to get a larger view of the great packaging design!

The products are selling in all eight outlet stores owned by Variety Wholesalers, except for Meditation Gardens, which is currently available in Rose’s. Variety Wholesalers has a total of well over 200 stores throughout the South.

Any leftover samples are being used by Metro to show the products to other retailers – the more the better! In the near future the six new packaging solutions will be added to our product pages.

Once again, kudos go to everyone on the corporate team who created the packaging. Congratulations on a job well done!

It’s a triple play! Our Meatball Baker, Party on the Go and Perfect Slice are featured in the Winter 2009 edition of “Innovation,” the quarterly design publication of the Industrial Designers Society of America. Our senior concept designer, who created the Perfect Slice, submitted the products to the magazine. The Party on the Go was invented by our client, Joy, and the Meatball Baker was invented by our client, Jean. Congratulations, everyone!

What a nice surprise to see all three products in the Housewares section of the magazine, right up there with G.E., Bunn, Bosch, Oreck and Pyrex, in a full-page spread in “Innovation!” Each product shot includes a great description, as well as a link to Davison.

Our fabulous RV Leveler is in the news again — this time as a featured new RV product in the January 2010 issue of Family Motor Coach Association magazine. With approximately 103,000 active member families, FMCA is the world’s largest motorhome owners group. Check out the write-up on the FMCA webpage … Where will this innovative little leveler turn up next!?

The Party on the Go, which we developed for our client, Joy, is featured as “the smart buy” in the new 2010 Avon catalog! This is the first product we have ever had for sale at the leading beauty products company, which has markets in more than 100 countries around the world. The handy food caddy “with 5-in-one uses to carry & serve your favorite snacks” is also featured on Avon’s online store.

The client has received a net profit on this product

A typical project does not get a royalty agreement, sell in stores or generate a profit.

It may be cold and blustery outside, but one of the summer’s hottest items can be found for sale in the holiday edition of “Things You Never Knew Existed.” Check out the Aviva Sun Seats, for which we created the graphics and packaging. The new pool product also has been added to Davison.com … can’t wait until next summer!

Our client, Jean, visited us so we could celebrate her success. At a delicious dinner held in Inventionland of spaghetti and meatballs (prepared in the Meatball Baker), she was presented with a gleaming covered tray that concealed a large royalty check. Jean responded with shock, amazement and tears of joy.

Jean and her husband, Donald, said they may use the money to move to a warmer climate when he retires, so they can enjoy their love of golf and get away from the bitter northern Minnesota winters. The couple was blown away by Inventionland. “I love this place, this is awesome; it’s like a dreamland,” said Jean. “You can’t even put it into words, it’s so cool.”

Product update: The Meatball Baker was featured two more times on QVC; apparently they know a hit when they see one! The product was presented during the popular segment “In the Kitchen with David.” The Meatball Baker also earned a Customer Top Rating on QVC.com. Most of the customers who rated the product gave it 5 out of 5 stars! To quote just a few: “Wow! Whatta Pan!” “WONDERFUL PAN!” and “I would LOVE to MEET the person who invented this marvelous pan. Talk about GENIOUS!!”

The product is also selling on Amazon.com, Taylor Gifts, SkyMall, and many other stores!

A typical project does not get a royalty agreement, sell in stores or generate a profit.

The Perfect Serve, Davison’s new combination pizza cutter and spatula, is now for sale in Taylor Gifts, a popular online retailer. The innovative kitchen gadget makes it easier to neatly slice and serve a pizza without having to cut through repeatedly, or use your fingers to help dish it up.

We developed the Perfect Serve pizza cutter and with a non-slip rubber handle, so users can secure a tight grip as the stainless steel wheel slices through pizza crust and all of the toppings. The cutting wheel is located at the front of the spatula to avoid rubbing knuckles across hot pizza, and the contoured edge conforms to the crust of the pizza for serving it to friends and family. Not only great for pizza, it can also be used for dishing up dessert after dinner! 

This corporate product was invented and licensed by Davison for its own benefit.

A Davison-designed client product, the Pizza Keeper, will air early next year on the nation’s most popular home shopping network. The innovative container stores leftover pizza compactly in the refrigerator.

The first manufacturer that saw the Pizza Keeper licensed it immediately. The president of the company loved the product and said he thinks it will do well because it solves a problem that everyone has experienced.

The client has not made a profit on this product.

The newest innovations in the sewing/crafting world have just hit the store shelves, and they all have a blue “D” on the package. Four Davison products/packages, including a client project that we developed for a corporation are now in Jo-Ann stores, a leading specialty retailer of crafting and sewing products.

The Better Bobbin, invented by our client, Thomas, provides an innovative and time-saving way to wind bobbins of all sizes without having to unthread a sewing machine – Congratulations, Thomas! The Quick Cut electric scissors provides a more convenient and precise cutting tool. The Travel Folding Stitcher’s Tools combines tape measure, scissors, needle threader, seam ripper, stiletto, and a removable magnifying glass in one. We also created interactive packaging for the Petite Press mini iron.

A typical project does not get a royalty agreement, sell in stores or generate a profit. The client has not made a profit on this product.

In addition to all the many and varied consumer products we design, Davison also develops highly technical products for medical, government, and other industries. A sampling of these products is included on our website to show our capabilities extend far beyond consumer products, which may appeal to clients who have technical ideas that are not consumer related.

It can be quite difficult to determine what an industrial product does just by looking at it, however. So, we’ve added descriptions to all the innovative items on the six industrial product pages. Check out the latest update to Davison.com!

Our client, Gary, was blown away when he found out his pet care invention, the Dog Wash, was selling in Sky Mall, an airline catalog that features luxury goods and products from specialty manufacturers. The sprinkler installer got the great news as an invited guest to Davison in Pittsburgh, PA, where his new product idea was developed. During a visit to Inventionland, he saw the packaged product for the first time and learned it was already on the market.
“That was awesome,” said Gary. “It was even better than when I submitted my idea!”

He got a bigger surprise when George Davison, founder and CEO, presented him with his first royalty check. When asked what he was going to do now, he laughed and said, “I’m going to Disneyworld!” After several years of working on his idea, the receipt of his first royalty check was “a blessing” and “perfect timing,” said Gary, who was out of work due to the poor economy.

Inventor’s story:
Gary came up with his new product idea in an attempt to help his buddy, “Snake,” who had a dirty, white dog that ran away whenever he tried to give him a bath. Gary had some scraps of pipe and hose in his truck, so he built a device that would enable his friend to contain and wash the dog. Lo and behold, it worked. He saw a need for such a device on the market, so he went online and found Davison, a new product development firm that provides services to inventors, corporations and entrepreneurs. He submitted his idea and the design team went to work.

The finished product, which was licensed by Maze Pet Products, is a portable and inflatable dog washing station that is easy to set up and use. The lightweight, heavy duty unit hooks up to a garden hose and has an adjustable full spray nozzle and gentle side spray, as well as a side entry for easy canine access.

Gary was not only thrilled with the product and royalty check, but by the royal treatment he and his friend, Scott, received at Davison. They toured Inventionland, “the world’s most creative workspace,” and met with Mr. Davison and members of the design and licensing team. The client was impressed with the “professional operation” and the work everyone has put into his product.

Gary described Mr. Davison as “a down-to-earth dude” who “really knows what he’s doing.” He was also impressed with the company’s development process.

“Davison didn’t just develop my idea, they actually expanded on it,” he said. “I was skeptical; I never saw it coming this far. But it’s there, it happened, and I can’t believe it.”

A typical project does not get a royalty agreement, sell in stores or generate a profit.