Developing a product in hopes that it becomes “Seen on TV” is an act of faith, so reports Popular Mechanics.
Amateur designers in shops and basements across America cobble together prototypes using household items hacked up and rigged with bits of wire, perfecting their inventions for months before bringing them before the infomercial kingpin, arbiter of what is and isn’t seen on TV, Telebrands CEO AJ Khubani.
Sitting beneath posters of past infomercial hits like the Windshield Wonder, Khubani and his family hold court in a New Jersey conference room, allowing a couple of dozen aspiring designers each 5 minutes to pitch whatever item they pull out of a duffel bag, briefcase or grocery sack from Reno, Chicago or Mooresville, N.C.
With names like the Hanky Tanky Hanger, Showerhands and the Tearless Onion, it’s a shame only about one in 100 Inventor’s Day contributions makes the big time.
Photo by Popular Mechanics.