Africa Bags : Why Didn't I Think of That? ®

Africa Bags

africabags

Hear the Radio Feature:
Play




Our New Daily Player!

For sometime now, we’ve had a special project in the works. We wanted to give our listeners and readers a chance to hear a new Why Didn’t I Think of That?® feature every day, even if they’re away from the radio. And that’s exactly what we’ve done. Today marks the beginning phases of a plan [...]


Get the Why Didnt I Think of That?® Podcast:
Add to iTunesAdd to Zune Podcast RSS Feed Add to Google Reader/Homepage Add to My Yahoo
Hall of Fame Spotlight: Spray Paint

Nobody thought about putting paint in an aerosol can until Ed Seymour. In 1949, Seymour was looking for a novel way to demonstrate a new aluminum paint. His wife suggested putting it in an aerosol can, like ones recently introduced for insecticides. To his surprise, the sprayer — not the paint — became the star of his demonstration.


Get the Why Didnt I Think of That?® Podcast:
Add to iTunesAdd to Zune Podcast RSS Feed Add to Google Reader/Homepage Add to My Yahoo
Hall of Fame Spotlight: Dole Pineapple

While in Hawaii in the 1800′s, James Dole discovered a fruit most people had never seen or heard of before: The pineapple. He began importing the fruit to the mainland and introduced the country to this exotic, sweet treat. The pineapple became a national favorite, and the Dole Food Company became the largest supplier of fruits and vegetables in the world.


Get the Why Didnt I Think of That?® Podcast:
Add to iTunesAdd to Zune Podcast RSS Feed Add to Google Reader/Homepage Add to My Yahoo
TOMS Shoes

He started his first business in college. He sold his second business to Clear Channel. He came within four minutes of winning CBS’s the Amazing Race. He’s led an interesting life, but what Blake Mycoskie is best known for is starting TOMS Shoes, the company that has donated well over a million shoes to needy men, women, and children.


Get the Why Didnt I Think of That?® Podcast:
Add to iTunesAdd to Zune Podcast RSS Feed Add to Google Reader/Homepage Add to My Yahoo
Hall of Fame Spotlight: Gatorade

Today it’s as synonymous with sports as cheerleaders or sweatbands. But not too long ago, Gatorade was just a nameless concoction, cooked up to revitalize the University of Florida’s football team: the Gators. The Gators were losing. A lot. One reason for that was the hot Florida weather dehydrating the players. The “Gator-Aid” not only saved the team, but it has been hydrating and refreshing some of the world’s greatest athletes ever since.

Today’s Hall of Fame Spotlight: The Story of Gatorade.

Play

Get the Why Didnt I Think of That?® Podcast:
Add to iTunesAdd to Zune Podcast RSS Feed Add to Google Reader/Homepage Add to My Yahoo

What they do:
To stimulate the local economy, Holly and Todd Petitt taught people in African villages in Malawi to design and sew reusable cloth shopping bags for sale in the US.

Inspiration:
A documentary about Malawi’s poverty, disease and disasters inspired the Pettis of Loveland CO to make a difference.

About the business:
Learning that Malawi produces cotton, the Petitt's formed a non-profit corporation, purchased local cloth, and brought foot powered sewing machines into the villages. More than 4,000 bags were sold the first year, mostly through africabags.org. 100% of the profit returns to the villages.

Axioms:

Related Blog Stories:

TOMS Shoes - March 23, 2012

He started his first business in college. He sold his second business to Clear Channel. He came within four minutes of winning CBS’s the Amazing Race. He’s led an interesting life, but what Blake Mycoskie is best known for is starting TOMS Shoes, the company that has donated well over a million shoes to needy men, women, and children.

Summit Series: Connecting Young Entrepreneurs - July 21, 2011

This past April, 1,000 young entrepreneurs, including a list of who’s who in the world of Gen-Y innovators, boarded a lavish cruise ship bound for international waters. Each guest paid $3,500 to attend the invite-only “Summit at Sea,” where they spent three days doing yoga sessions, drinking, dancing, tagging sharks, taking survival courses, sun-tanning, and playing beach volleyball. Oh yeah, there were some workshops and lectures too.

While the Summit at Sea is the company’s most recent event, they’ve been building up their credibility for the last 3 years. According to Forbes, “Past Summit Series planted the seeds for multimedia search engine Qwiki (which got an $8 million investment, led by Facebook cofounder Eduardo Saverin), connected [Napster founder] Sean Parker with music site Spotify and introduced business owners to philanthropists, spurring $2 million in donations.”

Premiere: Heritage Link Brands - February 15, 2011

Selena Cuffe recognized an injustice, and decided to do something that many of us forget is even an option: help people AND make money.