In need of the forum's help assessing a new idea...
 

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I’ve been a lister for several years, and it’s been primarily through the knowledge of the members of this forum that I’ve been able to maintain and truly enjoy my beloved 993, and for that I’m most grateful!

I now need your help again, this time in hopefully turning an idea of mine into an actual product. In full disclosure, the forum admin has graciously allowed me to post this. I do not have any product to sell yet, and don't know when or if they'll be available in the near future.

So what I’ve created is a new safety stand that allows you to support a vehicle exactly where the manufacturer indicates you should ... but there’s a bit more to it than that.

I needed this stand to be light, ultra compact for easy transport, height adjustable, low profile to fit under limited clearance vehicles, and most importantly strong and durable enough that I could work under my car in confidence and safety.

After having the design tested repeatedly by an engineer from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University for durability, I built a few prototypes, and I've been fortunate enough to have been granted patents on the design, with still more pending.

A recent article was written about my stands by one of the admins at NICOclub which is the largest website for Nissan enthusiasts (the stands work with any make). The author shares his opinions and describes the benefits of the invention far more eloquently than I can:

http://www.nicoclub.com/archives/rennstand.html

In addition, I've had the good fortune of receiving a very nice testimonial of my stands by one of the tech writers for the PCA's Panorama magazine.

Now I’m humbly asking the forum for your honest assessment of the idea, and also where you feel the stands should be priced so I can build my business plan and continue to move this forward. So if you have a moment and you’re willing to, please help me by sharing your thoughts.

Your input is greatly appreciated!

Thank you so much,

Frank Ceravolo
CEO, RennStand Inc.
gyrfalcon01@yahoo.com

Very nice.

Go ahead and take my money. Seriously, I like it.

Looks like a great idea. The ability to adjust the height of it makes it different from other options I've seen.

As long as lateral stability is good, the product appears viable. Go for it!

I like it. I'd buy a set. As for pricing:

$125 set of 2
$199 set of 4

Add tax and shipping.

Thank you!!!

Hahaha, thank you so much for that! Hopefully I can someday:)

I really appreciate that! Just to give you an idea of the footprint, the base of each leg is about 12" fore to aft, and the width of the entire stand increases as you increase their height. So far it's proven to be very stable, and I hope to keep the geometry going into the production version someday.

Thank you so much!

Great, thank you! I really appreciate the input!

Time for you to go on Shark Tank!:)

Thank you! :) I must admit I've considered applying.

Another idea is to pitch this product to someone like David MacNeil, owner of WeatherTech. You are a family owned company. Made in the USA. He eats that stuff up. He has instant customer base. He's in France now for LeMans.

Another partner would be Groits.

I would definitely buy them at these prices.

Excellent! I appreciate you letting me know about Mr. MacNeil. I'll take a look at the company and reach out to him shortly after the race. It would be great to partner with someone with those values, as I'd definitely prefer the stands being built in the USA.

Thanks for reminding me about Griot's too. I've been a customer of theirs in the past, and see now that they could be a good fit. I've been pretty deep into the designing and patenting aspect of these stands, that I'm just now starting to switch gears towards the business side of things, so I really appreciate you helping to point me in the right direction!

I think to be a major "big box" retail item with stores like WalMart and Costco, you'd need to be about $99 for a set of 4. Don't know it you can get your costs that low and still have a good margin. Might not even be your strategy. Just thinking out loud.