Who makes this stuff?
The Snuggie wearable blanket, the PedEgg foot callous file, TopsyTurvy upside down tomato planter — these and more solutions to problems you didn’t know you had until you saw the infomercial are brightening up an otherwise gloomy retail sector.
As reported in the Wall Street Journal (link here: subscription required), the recession has driven down traditional consumer companies’ advertising and the cost of television air time. As Seen on TV — or ASOT — marketers’ rushed in to fill the gap and found a newly cost-conscious audience eager to buy their low-priced merchandise. So successful are the ASOT pitches that the products are moving out of the ether and into bricks-and-mortar retail outlets near you, including Wal-Mart, Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Walgreens.
The WSJ focuses on the inventors of these thingamabobs and the marketers who recognize their telegenic potential. But who makes this stuff … and makes the discount price possible? As Telebrands founder A.J. Khubani recounts his pioneering success in the ’80s, he saw UV sunglasses advertised for $59.99, got in touch with his father’s Taiwan-based supplier who agreed to make them for $1.00, then sold them for $10.00.
Your dad doesn’t have offshore contacts? You can turn to The Datamyne. A quick search of The Datamyne bill of lading database found Asad International of Hong Kong (Loud ’n Clear personal amplifiers), China’s Longhai Jun-Yi Metal Co. (Perfect Brownie Pans), Ningbo Dongrun Leisure Products (TopsyTurvy planters), and many more manufacturers (as well as other ASOT marketers such as Ideavillage and Allstar Marketing). To learn more about using The Datamyne to find new sources or new customers, contact us.