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Switchflops,The $30 Million School Project

Switchflops,The $30 Million School Project:Back to School “season is upon us, and even the best students need a little motivation to trade beach, summer camp and carefree days in the classroom. But what if you could turn a school project in the $ 30 million business?” This is exactly what Lindsay Phillips creator SwitchFlops, and did.

Now 25, Phillips came up with the idea SwitchFlops at 16, as part of the project of high artistic school. Today, her company – Lindsay Phillips – employs 35 full-time staff and is projected to bring in $ 30 million in revenue this year.

The idea is simple – SwitchFlops are sandals with interchangeable straps. Thus, instead of buying several pairs of sandals, customers can, and do not own a sandal with multiple straps. After the Great Recession, 3-in-one shoe (or, hell, 50-in-1), tailor-made for buyers with limited budgets.

Main sandals well worth $ 35, plus additional tape is $ 12. Officially launched in 2007, SwitchFlops now sold in more than 4000 stores worldwide, and in line Phillips has turned in another shoe, like ballet flats, wedges and espadrilles. The company also makes bags, scarves and sandals for children. Lindsay Phillips, the company is currently building overseas office.

It does not hurt that Phillips, a ripe old 23 years old, had the wisdom to know that she did not know – and brought on board a CEO Jeffrey Davidson, 50, who has extensive experience in growing companies.

Which is not to take away anything from Phillips, who at the initiative and vision in the age of 16 years to develop their skills into something with commercial potential. She made a few flip-flops – ceramic flip-flops, which had straps with “fun, funky buttons on them. “It makes sense, when I came up with this idea,” says Phillips, who grew up in Tampa, Fla. “Everyone wears flip-flops to school, all the time.”

Her parents proudly displayed colorful sandals in their house. And the guests noticed. One woman even tried to put them on the screen. “They are ceramic,” Phillips said to her, but the boy suddenly came up with the idea that she should do some real triggers.

“I bought a fun button and tried to put them on the sandals, but they continued to fall, when I go to the beach, so I came up with Velcro, and began lining his shoes,” says Phillips, who returned from its prototype sandals straps for family members and friends.

It was just a hobby at first, until a relative said: “It’s really an amazing idea. Should patent it.

“I am 16 years old,” said Phillips. “I really do not know what a patent. Can you help me?”

She got going sympathetic but skeptical of a patent attorney, who told her to do some research and make sure that there was nothing of the kind already available in the market. If she can not find anything, he said that working with her. It is her research turned up nothing, and to the surprise of counsel, he could not find anything either. They began the process of applying for a patent. It took four years.

Phillips graduated from high school and college began at this time. She majored in art history at Rollins College and minored in communications, instead of focusing on the business. “My parents told me to learn what pleases me, because I would probably do business all my life,” she says.

But its innovations are always at the height of mind. Phillips worked as a summer in the leather Polo Ralph Lauren products for separation in New York, bringing its sales and production skills, as well as a trip to Europe in the Semester at Sea program – until she was ready to open its creation in the world.

The patent was issued in 2004, and after Phillips partnered with her mother, Liz, and began looking for the manufacturer. SwitchFlops made his first real retail appearance in January 2007 at the Surf Expo Trade Show in Orlando.

“We started with 10 bands,” says Phillips. “Primary Colors, but we would like to start with the basics, and it was very successful. We find our typical customer has 3 pairs of shoes and 10 bands, and for them to be able to go out and set them up – well, they get very excited and like to do it. We really think that all about versatility and value. ”

Phillips was able to tap into the growing Zeitgeist settings. Although people have always wanted to stand out from the crowd, the technology has really allowed consumers to tailor products to their tastes in recent years – and businesses, offering more interactive, design their own experience.

As marketing guru Randy Gage, author, why are you Dumb, Sick and broke … and how to get Smart, healthy and wealthy, said: “I have always said,” Find a need and fill it out, but it’s really bad advice, because people usually do not do what they want and what they want. Top Tips is, “Find and want to fill it.”

Phillips, of course, managed to do just that. “SwitchFlops allow you to express yourself,” she says. “Everyone wants to be a little unique, and although we could have the same bag, we do not want it to be exactly the same.”

Phillips recalls a meeting with one of her clients, including 8 pairs of shoes and 30 bands, and seeing the woman looked at her, shows how kids in a candy store, because they have chosen belts and matched them with shoes. “It’s amazing to be in the store and watch it happen because everyone takes something different,” she says.

And, different, of course, the whole idea.

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Illinois Lottery

Illinois Lottery:Illinois is trying to become the first state to fully privatize the management of the state lottery, as well as advertising. Today they announced that they have two finalists, which will give public speeches next week on their proposal lottery.

Northstar lottery group, which is a partnership between GTECH and Scientific Games, Camelot and Illinois are the two finalists bidding for a lucrative contract to run the state lottery. The winner will be chosen in a public hearing in which Governor Pat Quinn will announce the selection and award winner of the 10-year contract.

“We are very excited about the potential opportunities,” said Representative GTECH Bob Vincent on Monday.

The approach, which takes Illinois, of course, on the other. Although the state will continue to have ownership of the lottery, as well as regulatory control, the idea to put the bulk of the work of running a private company, is that to be done. In the Illinois State Lottery has annual revenue of about $ 2 billion.

Send Pakistan Aid, Not Jobs, Urge US Textile Groups

Send Pakistan Aid, Not Jobs, Urge US Textile Groups:WASHINGTON: Group U.S. textile and cotton farmers on Wednesday strongly opposed the proposed new trade benefits for Pakistan, arguing that the United States should send aid to flood ravaged country, rather than jobs in the U.S..

Groups expressed concern in a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Trade Representative Ron Kirk, who called last week, the Chamber of Commerce, the leading U.S. business groups to press Congress for a generous package of U.S. textile tariff reduction for help Pakistan recover.

“If this proposal is accepted, it will cause irreparable damage to the U.S. textile industry, which has led to significant job losses”, the National Association of Textile Organizations, the National Cotton Council and three other industry groups, the letter said.

“We understand and recognize the magnitude of recent heavy floods in Pakistan, and the immense human tragedy, this disaster has caused. However, we believe that the proper response to this situation is for the United States and other countries to continue their outpouring of humanitarian aid,” he said groups .

Group, which also included the American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition, expressed support for carefully “Reconstruction of possible zones of” trafficking “in Pakistan, that the House of Representatives has already approved and a similar bill, which has stopped in the Senate.

“These bills provide Pakistan a special tariff preferences for products accounted for 74 per cent of their ship in the U.S. market, while maintaining the normal treatment fee at the critical categories of workers and producers throughout the hemisphere,” he said groups.

But “any expansion of the product or geographic scope beyond the language included in the accounts listed above would lead to significant loss of U.S. textile and apparel jobs and make the domestic industry strongly oppose such legislation,” he said groups.

Apple Announcement

Apple Announcement:Here we go again. This announcement is Apple Day, one of those few times a year, when Steve Jobs takes the stage and performed what America might be better advertising.
Apple will push a musical event on Sept. 1 at 10 am PST, 1 PM Eastern.

As always, Apple fans have suspected that Mr. Jobs will present today, but the specifics remain a mystery.

Most analysts have the money for new Ipods – possibly a touch screen Ipod Nano or IPod Touch with a camera.

Perhaps we have also heard that Apple has in store for Lala, a subscription music service, which it purchased several months ago.

For a closer look at Apple this week, rumors, read the post from yesterday.

The monitor will have a full report after today’s event, but if you want to live, go to Gizmodo, CNET, GDGT or Apple.com, which will offer video throughout the presentation.