ADAM GOLDBERG AND KAY SAUCIER AND THE HANGMAN
Mothers
often brag about their offspring, as in "my son, the doctor" competing
with "my son, the lawyer." Now I get to brag about Adam Goldberg, "my
son, the entrepreneur" and his best friend and business partner Kay
Saucier, the inventor.
The saying goes that "necessity is the
mother of invention" and in Kay's case that specific moment was when he
was high on a ladder doing construction work for his company Choice
Design and Remodeling and dropped and broke a $600 trim nail finish
gun. After he finished a manly bout of swearing, that exciting light
bulb went off as he decided he needed to find a tool to hold his
expensive equipment while perched on high. With a wife and three young daughters, safety is always a priority.
Searching online, he
discovered, unhappily, that such a ladder attachment didn't exist. The
answer then became clear: invent one himself. His reasoning was
simple. Anyone who works on a ladder, for a living or as an occasional
hobbyist or chore completer, needs an extra pair of hands, similar to an
octopus...and no one wants to drop a tool, $500 or $50, from their work
station. Also the sobering thought is that thousands of accidents and
even deaths occur from ladder accidents and falling tools every year.
Hence,
The Hangman was born, to mount on the rung of a ladder, on either or
both sides, to hold tools in place and free hands to complete the work
safely and efficiently. Over many reincarnations, the basic design has
stayed the same as modifications have been made. Kay built the first
one with his dad in a garage, not unlike the many garages that gave
birth to computer geniuses like Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak with Apple
and Hewlett and Packard as well as Jeff Bazos with
amazon.com.
At first it was composed of a guitar stand and an adaptable flagpole
holder, with miscellaneous pieces of wood and aluminum. Kay and his dad
walked through many a hardware store over several months searching for
improvement ideas, but that first prototype wasn't strong enough and had
too many components.
The next step was to start the patent
process which is both lengthy and expensive, to be sure that there was
nothing else like it in the marketplace. Once that was established, Kay
contacted a company, Invent Home, that he found online to help him with
his novel and inventive idea. A waiting game ensued, hoping for a
"magic person", a fairy godfather if you will, to come along and take up
the cause.
Enter my son, Adam, who though not the skilled fix-it
man, nonetheless recognized The Hangman as a unique, useful and
essential addition to anyone's tool box. A working partnership was
forged as the two men determined to take the project up a notch to the
next step.
A trip to a local college's engineering department was
an expensive and frustrating misstep, when what they hoped would be a
home run turned into three strikes out at home plate. The
over-engineered result "could have held a Volkswagen" instead of the
tool they wanted to work for up to 35 pounds.
Soon after they
took to the road and located a Seymour office park, that focused on
manufacturing, to knock on doors. The first stop, a steel metal
company, steered them to what would be the wizard and magician and fairy
godfather they needed, all wrapped into one company: JV Precision
Machine Company. A very successful family run operation since 1975, the
second generation, brothers Josef and Andrew Visinski, with their
prowess in manufacturing, have motivated Kay and Adam in all the right
directions.
Shepherding their progress, the brothers tooled the
first real aluminum model, perfected it, worked on additional pieces to
complement it, like a paint can ring, and have signed on as partners in
the process. Incredibly generous with their time and talents, they have
shared their years of expertise to guide the budding businessmen along
the straight path. According to the Visinskis, "Precision tools are our
trademark work and we are proud The Hangman will be the newest product
we offer."
Another incredible coup was Adam and Kay's venture
with SCORE, Southern Connecticut Organization of Retired Executives, a
non-profit group of volunteers who offer business help for new
businesses. They hit another jackpot with their initial contact with
Wes Thompson of Sandy Hook, who had decades of experience at I.B.M. and
also at running his own company. As a mentor and adviser, Thompson has
been invaluable in guiding and advising for major and minor decisions.
Adam and Kay consider Wes "awesome."
Wes remembers the day Adam and Kay first appeared at SCORE, May 7th, 2013 in Newtown to discuss their new business venture.
"Adam
and Kay were already successful business owners but they were looking
for advice. Kay had invented a new product that they wanted to
manufacture and sell as partners. Their original question was how to
get market research data that would allow them to forecast potential
sales. That initial meeting grew into a long term and close advisory
relationship with me that still continues today. We routinely talk by
phone, meet in person, and exchange email on any topic that involves
managing and operating a business. We are business friends who share
ideas, opinions and develop action plans. I feel like I am part of
their business team. I celebrate their success and value them as
colleagues and friends.
"SCORE is a nationwide non-profit
volunteer organization dedicated to helping small businesses, both new
and existing. Some clients are early stage entrepreneurs who are
defining their ideas, building their plans or obtaining financing.
Others are established businesses that are seeking to grow or have
challenges and need someone to discuss options. Some are seeking to
buy, sell or merge with another business. SCORE has been providing
advise for nearly fifty years as a resource partner of the U. S. Small
Business Administration (SBA) and has a network of approximately 11,000
volunteers at 340 offices that deliver services at no charge. Adam and
Kay are just one of the burgeoning concerns that we have helped
."
With
the trademark The Hangman, the next step was to create a company name.
Kay went on Google and typed in Hangman and then proceeded to check
every language looking for a name. Finally, at the end of the alphabet,
at "Y" for Yiddish, he found the "cool, foreign and unique spelling" he
was seeking: thus Talyn Industries, LLC was born.
Now armed
with a company name, it was time to hire a media consultant. Once
again, online, Adam searched for a video production company and hooked
up with the husband and wife team of Eric and Kristen Pontbriand of
Media InFocus of Plymouth, CT. Liking them right away, Adam and Kay
have enjoyed their "dedication to progress" as they have worked on
creating a website, a video, designing logos and business cards, and
creating a booth at a pair of upcoming trade shows. The Hangman will be
officially unveiled in March, 2014 at the Journal of Light Construction
in Providence, Rhode Island and in May at the National Hardware Show in
Las Vegas, Nevada.
Also in the works is a major fundraising
campaign on KICKSTARTER online, with a goal of raising at least
$10,000. The public is encouraged to go to
Facebook.com/talynindustries to *like their page or to
www.talynindustries.com to view their video. Now that KICKSTARTER is launched, go to link
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1021855249/the-hangman-an-invention-
to-secure-tools-to-your-l and pledge dollar amounts for special tiered levels.
For
example, a donation of $1 gets you a thank you email from Talyn
Industries while $15 will secure an aluminum Hangman key chain and
bottle opener etched with your name. Move quickly for the two Early Bird
specials limited to just 50 units each. For a pledge of $89, you get a
Hangman etched with your name. For $109 you get one Hangman with paint
ring, with your name etched.
Once the Early Bird Specials are
filled, for $99 you get one Hangman, while a pledge of $119 will provide
one Hangman, with a paint can ring attachment. A pledge of $200 will
offer 2 Hangmen, with one paint can attachment, while a pledge of $1000
will include all of the $200 package plus a full tour of the
manufacturing facility, a meet and greet and lunch with the principal
inventor and partners and your name engraved on your 2 Hangmen in custom
laser etching. Free shipping and handling is included on all U.S.
orders. If the full goal of $10,000 is not reached, there is no
obligation to honor your pledge.
The next problem to resolve was
the packaging of The Hangman and Adam and Kay were fortunate to contact
William Ledewitz of New Haven, a gentleman who has spent his life's work
designing boxes for everything from toothpaste to board games. Bill
generously gave them advice gleaned from his decades of work in the
packaging field.
You can encourage these exciting
entrepreneurs/inventors by investigating their innovative new product:
The Hangman. Like them on Facebook, watch their production video on
their website or make a pledge on KICKSTARTER. Make your next trip up a
ladder safer and more productive. Let The Hangman guarantee you won't
drop an expensive tool or hurt yourself, thanks to my son Adam, the
entrepreneur and his good friend, Kay, the inventor.
