Daily Archives: December 2, 2014

Turtle Taxis

Taxis typically aim to get their customers from A to B as quickly as possible, but not all customers are interested in speed. Turtle Taxis in Yokohama, Japan gives passengers the option to ride slowly to enjoy a more relaxing journey while also helping the environment.

Turtle Taxis comes with a button at the back of the driver’s seat. If passengers aren’t in a rush they can press the button to let the driver know they can slow down. As well as enjoying a more comfortable and less stressful ride, the scheme also enables cabbies to practice more eco-friendly driving practices.

There are two ideas to take from this:

1. Might a ‘safe and slow’ taxi service find a market in the UK?

2. Are you assuming that all your customers want the same thing. As Turtle Taxi’s have found out, there can be a significant number who want something different, and that different thing could save you money.

Special Spectacles

Most people who wear spectacles either end up wearing the same pair all the time or spend a fortune on several different pairs. Japanese design group, Nendo, has come up with a third alternative. The companies spectacles design does away with screws, and uses magnets instead to hold the arms in place. The upshot of this is that arms become interchangeable, enabling owners to change the look, colour and style without buying a new pair of glasses.

I haven’t seen anything like this in the UK yet, so maybe that could be something to look into. Thinking more broadly, are there other items which are typically worn, and which could be given a modular makeover like this? I’ve seen modular flip-flops in the past. Anything else?

www.nendo.jp

The Bulletproof Clipboard

Have you ever felt the need for a bulletproof clipboard? No me neither but The Ballistic Clipboard from Impact Armor Technologies in the United States has been designed in response to requests from law enforcement agencies. It’s issued to traffic officers doing routine traffic stops and is both bullet and stab proof.

I tell the story for two reasons – firstly as a warning that there are probably better career moves than becoming a traffic cop in the United States! But secondly, perhaps there’s an opportunity here. The tragic case of a Leeds school teacher who was stabbed in her classroom a few weeks ago, highlighted the dangers faced by people in seemingly ‘safe’ professions. In addition to teachers, I’m know that social workers, health professionals and civil servants often risk assault by members of the public in the course of their work. Could there be an opportunity to create a range of items (like the clipboard) that double up as either a weapon or shield in the event of the worst happening?

There’s Money In Muck

Composting may be the right thing to do for the environment, but it can be hard to get around the smell and the mess, particularly for town dwellers with small gardens. Compost Cab is a new service about to launch in Washington, DC, that removes some of the unpleasant aspects of the job..

Compost Cab provides customers with a bin equipped with a compostable bag liner. Each day clients will fill the bin with their organic material, and once a week Compost Cab will pick up the bag, leaving behind only a clean bin with a new liner. The cost is simply $8 per week per bin.

Clients who have been with Compost Cab for nine months or longer can claim some finished soil in return. For every fifty pounds of waste the company collects from them, they can receive five pounds of fresh compost and one pound of worm castings in exchange.

Apparently the average American family produces more than 500 pounds of leftover organic material every year. There’s no reason why a British family would produce any less. Composting not only keeps that waste out of landfills, but it also produces nutrient-rich, fertile, natural soil. In addition, it keeps organic waste out of other bins, thereby freeing space for other materials.

It’s early days , but this could well prove to be a big success in these eco-friendly times. And if it works in the United States, why not here?

Utilitarian Undies

I’m not sure whether Canadian Danieal Cormier is on to something and I’m out of touch with the way people live, but his business idea is interesting in any event. Danieal is hoping to revolutionise the men’s underwear market with a design that incorporates pockets for phones and other gadgets. Now I don’t know about you, but I rarely find myself in a situation where I’m wandering around in my Boxers and feel the need for pockets. I tend to wear trousers if I’m going to be doing stuff requiring pockets. But maybe I’m old fashioned.

Anyway, the business is a timely reminder to give some thought to how the clothing market might be given a boost. If people are so tied to their phones that they need a pocket in their pants, maybe they need one in their socks as well. Maybe women would like storage space in their bra’s? Secret agents and aspiring bombers have been known to hide stuff in their shoes, so why not ordinary folk? Time to get your thinking cap on…now there’s a thought…hats!