Ideas are free. We all have them.
Most ideas we have are basic. They are not massive world shifters or life changers for everyone in humanity. They are everyday and simple. But, it’s these very same ideas that can be the most successful and useful that has ever been seen. And ones that are so obvious that it’s amazing they haven’t been spotted and used before!
Swan Vestas were the iconic match company in the British Isles. Founded in 1883 the company was a stalwart of high street shops. The public from all backgrounds used their matches for everything from boiling a kettle for tea to lighting candles on a birthday cake.
But their chief fame was that they were the go-to brand for pipe and cigarette users, giving them the moniker of ‘the smoker’s match’. So much so that estimates calculate the number of matches ever used to be in the billions.
It was a hyper successful company and highly profitable. Creating greater revenue became difficult because most people already used them for every type of daily activity.
But, as legend has it, one pipe smoker employee saw otherwise.
A simple strike.
One day in the 1970’s this nameless pipe enjoying fellow turned up at Bryant and May’s (the owner and manufacturer) stating he could save the company millions with one simple idea. As the company had researched every avenue before to achieve this, they seriously doubted his claim. He persisted and they agreed to pay him £1m if he could, indeed, match his statement.
Swan Vesta boxes had two strips of glass paper on either side of the box that matches were struck across to ignite them. He noted generally people favoured one side to the other (most likely to being either left or right handed). He provided a number of boxes he had collected that showed this to be true.
Bryant and May had double the cost in providing a striking zone that was effectively rarely used. His idea was to have only one on one side, halving that cost instantly.
They did further checks. The pipe genius was right. His keen eye and simple suggestion proved to be a winner. Swan Vesta matches began being produced in one edge only boxes. The public barely noticed and few complaints were received. Bryant and May made millions, and our simple genius walked away with a million of it.
Put that in your pipe and smoke it!!
Scoot to success.
Dominic McVey was 15 when hit started making it simple….and big!
When misspelling on an internet search he discovered collapsible metal scooters. They were cool, simply cool, and he wanted one. In fact he believed other teens would too. Unable to afford one he cut a deal with the American manufacturers to buy five (through clever fundraising – disco events, trading on the stock markets with his Dad’s credit card etc) and get one free.
He sold those five (including his) in days. Then next week he sold ten more. He knew he was onto something. This portable, lightweight, fun transport was the perfect toy/transport in one. With further bravado he won the European distribution rights and two years later his sales topped 11 million units! Even the Queen called him a pioneer in entrepreneurism.
Today he’s worth over £7 million. A millionaire from a few pieces of metal and a lightweight frame.
Don’t think simple is vital? Just take a look at You Tube and see how many people view videos on how to make an omelette, wire a plug, teach a dog to sit or wallpaper a room that has unusual angles.
So used have we become to using technology to solve complexities and do advanced things, we’ve stopped using simple as the tool for making life work.
How simple can you be?
Some of the greatest ideas ever have been simple.
Simple because they make it easy for us to live our lives well or efficiently or enjoyably.
The three point seatbelt, sliding doors, the solar light bulb, and of course one of my all time favourites, The Post-It note, to mention but a few. They simplify, streamline, and work.
So, what’s your simple?
Your simple need that you find an answer for could be the one EVERYONE wants the answer for. Or, like the metal scooter, knows it’s something they would love.
If you have an idea for a product or service (who ever thought dog walking for other people would take off!!), don’t dismiss it because it seems too basic. In this mega busy, fast paced 21st Century, there are more and more things that would support our living. Simple things.
Keep it simple and you can be super successful.
References – aestheticons.wordpress.com – Swan Vestas Matches.
https://inspireip.com – A simple idea that made millions.
https://uk.finance.yahoo – Just how did Dominic McVey make his money?
Photo attribution under free content license – https://pixabay.com/photos/women-idea-university-students-1687853/ by melyserna.
