You’re stuck in traffic with the kids in the back seat when you hear what may be the most dreaded words in the English language: “Mommy, I have to go to the bathroom – now!”
It was precisely this phrase that inspired little Kimberly Feinzilberg’s dad, Jacob, to invent a handy device to satisfy such a need.
Inflate-a-Potty, a deflatable, reusable toilet that folds to pocket size and can be tucked into a glove compartment or a women’s purse, has been sold for eight years through children’s products catalogs and an auto travel catalog.
Recently, Feinzilberg and his partner Michael Brown began selling the product to other Web sites through their Delray Beach, FL company Brite Times Inc.
This spring, they launched a Web site featuring the loos. In eight weeks, sales increased 70%. Pretty good considering the pair only started the site because they didn’t have the infrastructure to handle the unexpected volume of consumer telephone calls that had been pouring in unbidden.
They had put out a press release after the rollout, but hadn’t figured out how to market the site. “If you key in `potty’ on a search engine, nothing comes up,” Feinzilberg says.
The partners ask $2 to $3 more for the Inflate-a-Potty online than what the catalogs charge because they don’t want their Web site (www.potties.com) to infringe on the catalogs’ business. Two sizes are featured – adult and child, for $18.95 and $16.95, respectively.
Offline, some 60% of the customers are parents who purchase the potty for long car trips or in case of emergencies.
Online, the adult size is being purchased at 10 times the rate of the kids’ version.
“It seems there’s a great need for adults to have it,” Feinzilberg remarks. “One of the most important things is peace of mind – knowing it’s there.”
At some point, Feinzilberg figures he’ll build a database of those customers.
An unexpected benefit to the Web business is its international appeal.
Australian direct marketer Danoz Direct Australasia wants to carry the potty, and agreements with Japan and New Zealand and perhaps the Netherlands are reportedly in the offing.
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