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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 [...]


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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.


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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.


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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.


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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.

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What they do:
Customer designed and voter-approved tee shirts, sold on-line.

Inspiration:
Selling tee shirts online is no big deal, but Jacob DeHart and Jake Nickell ask visitors to their website to submit their own original tee-shirt designs.

About the business:
Visitors to threadless.com submit original tee-shirt designs, which are posted every week. Web viewers vote on their favorites, and winning designs are put on tee shirts. Designers get cash, gift certificates and the opportunity to win more. So far, every design printed on a tee shirt has sold out. Recent projected sales $25-$30 million.

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.

Podcast Episode #5: “Rethink Your Industry” - January 13, 2012

In the latest episode of the Why Didn’t I Think of That? Podcast, Bob Smith and Greg Anastos sit down with thinkofthat.net blogger Benjamin Christopher and discuss the first of their Axioms For Entrepreneurs, “Re-think Your Industry.”

The Why Guys explore how companies like Netflix, Apple, Xerox, and General Motors were able to look at their industries, and their companies, in a new light.

Amazon’s Fire Sale - November 23, 2011

Amazon.com Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos says that they’re “the only tech company with low margins.”

Low margins is an understatement. The company is losing money on every single Kindle Fire tablet they sell. But it’s all part of Jeff Bezos plan to conquer the Universe. He may or may not succeed, but one thing’s clear: With the Kindle Fire, he has single-handedly created a low-end tablet market where there was none, and for that reason alone, he’s about to change the tech industry forever.

Groupon Occupies Wall Street - November 9, 2011

The road to Groupon’s initial public offering has been long and tortuous. But it’s finally over. Sure, they’re still losing money and getting negative press. But now they’re also worth more than $15 billion dollars. In fact, it’s the biggest IPO by an Internet Company since Google went public in 2004.

The question now is: How long will the party last?

Tyming is Everything - September 16, 2011

It was 1999. Aspiring screenwriter John Brozek was poking around a new website called eBay, and what he found surprised him: Counterfeit Rolex Watches. Lots of them.