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Page 75 GO IT ALONE!
new toys, the i-TOP. The i-TOP is an electronic top that, among other things, uses a flashing red light-emitting diode to display the number of spins achieved with a single twist. The top counts these revolutions by comparing its position to the magnetic field of the Earth, and users can compete to see who can achieve the most spins with a single twist. The i-TOP, retailed in the United States for approximately $10.99, and its manufacturer anticipated that the top would sell approximately 3.5 million units in 2004, the first full year of its release. It was projected that of that total, 2 million units would be sold in North America and 1.5 million would be sold in other parts of the globe.
The story of how the i-TOP was brought to market dramatically demonstrates today’s growing opportunities for individuals with particular specialties to make things happen—the go-it-alone revolution. Bob Fuhrer, the Manhattan-based president of Nextoy, LLC (www.Nextoy.com) has built a successful business because he makes things happen. He was approached by the top’s inventor, who is located in Israel, and agreed to oversee an initiative to bring the top to market. Ordinarily, Fuhrer would have attempted to interest one of the major toy manufacturers, such as Hasbro or Mattel, in licensing the product. However, Fuhrer says two factors influenced him: First, the i-TOP had a unique potential, so he wanted to play a particularly active role in ensuring its success. Second, “there was something new happening in the toy industry.” He recognized that the industry had reached the point where he could easily find the best specialists for each aspect of development and bring the toy to market by working with a collection of entities. Fuhrer identified a manufacturer for the product, Irwin Toy (www.IrwinToy.com) in Canada, and a small, independent design firm located in San Francisco. Irwin Toy, which has only three full-time employees and four contract consultants, is in itself a go-it-alone initiative. Irwin outsourced the packaging
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GO IT ALONE! Copyright 2004 by Bruce Judson. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
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