Novelty-gifts genius Shed Simove recently decided to create a new bathware product – a shower mitten that combines politics with personal hygiene. Intrigued? He tells Real Business how he got it off the ground (and into the shower).
Some people believe that "ideas" are ten a penny. In fact, ideas seem to be so common these days, some might say they’re a hundred a euro. The problem is this: because we can all have an idea (and we all do), ideas sometimes don’t get the respect they deserve.
You’re bloody lucky. Given the enormous vastness of the universe, you could have ended up as any number of nature’s creations – a rock, a sloth, a yellow tailed marmoset. Or even Paris Hilton. Instead, you've ended up as the highest order of life on the planet.
In the past, it was widely acknowledged that knowledge is power. Well, I’m afraid this bubble has burst – and in spectacular style. It’s simply no longer true that what you know is enough for your business to flourish or for you to gain that all-important competitive edge that makes customers return time after time.
To date, my products have sold nearly a million units worldwide. One of my best-selling ranges is a line of novelty remote controls made in collaboration with the fantastic team at NPW. But why stop at the CONTROL-A-MAN and the CONTROL-A-WOMAN when I could create... CONTROL-A-POLITICIAN?
We have a new columnist joining the Realbusiness.co.uk pantheon. Shed Simove is a TV maverick turned entrepreneur. He creates fun and hilarious products for the novelty gift market and has already sold nearly a milion units worldwide. Here's his story.
He was a producer on Big Brother, changed his name to God to prove it could be done, and launched a novelty goods business with best-selling lines including "Clitoris Allsorts" sweets selling over 250,000 units. Shed Simove is a true maverick. Speaking at the Fishtank festival this weekend, he tells us just how he did it.