Today, I had a nice long conversation with my Toy & Game Broker, Mike Marra from Marra Design Associates and I told him that I submitted my board game, “Global Quest” to the Shark Tank on ABC TV today. Since he watches that show religiously and has had a friend that was actually on the show, this is what he had to say…
The judges on the Shark Tank TV show are investors, which means they are not going to be doing any work for you. They are simply investing their money and are looking for a return on their investment. As a result, when you are on the show, the first thing they are going to ask you is, “What are you sales numbers like?” Just like a major toy company that you might pitch to license your next great toy or game, they want to see if you have been able to sell several thousand pieces in a short period of time (i.e. one year) on your own before they consider investing in you. If you don’t have a proven sales record, then more than likely, they are not going to invest in your product or service.
He also said that sometimes, another way you might be able to get onto ABC's Shark Tank with just a prototype is if you have an absolutely ridiculous and/or dangerous idea (i.e. An alarm clock that awakes you by cooking bacon in your room. Imagine how quickly that would cause a fire in your house, much less trying to avoid food poisoning from leaving uncooked bacon exposed in the open over night before you cook it.) Since this is a reality show, they are looking for ideas like this for the sole purpose of embarrassing these types of individuals. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want my 15 minutes of fame to be from humiliating myself in front of millions of viewers around the world.
Here’s the kicker. He told me that he had a friend that was a contestant on the show but was turned down by all the judges. His friend mentioned that even if your product is rejected by all the judges and you still decide to go out on your own to make a business and sell your product that was on the show, then the ABC or the Shark Tank TV show (I'm not sure which) still gets approximately 10% of all your profits because they gave you national exposure on television. Can you believe that?!?!
If after reading all of this advice, you still want to submit your product or invention to Shark Tank, their instructions are to submit your name, age, contact info, a recent photo (no larger than 1 MB) and a brief NON-CONFIDENTIAL description of your business product or idea to SharkTankCasting@yahoo.com.
NOTE: Before you email the Shark Tank TV show, make sure to go to their website first and read their “Terms of Use”: Here is the Shark Tank TV casting link. Good luck!
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
My Toy Broker
This blog is response to all the great feedback I received for my previous blog, Finding the Best Toy & Game Broker/Agent.
Today, I contacted Michael Marra from Marra Design Associates, LLC and I told him about how many of you were asking about him. This is why I really like the guy - we had about a 40 minute conversation on the phone about the toy and game industry; getting feedback about my idea to put my board game on the TV show called, "Shark Tank"; and games that he's created that have done well and others that did not. He's very genuine and really seems to love what he does with a sincere desire to help give people the best advice and direction.
What separates Marra Design from other Toy and Game Brokers is that they do not take your game to toy fairs and try to pitch your game or toy to major toy companies. Michael explained that this is because the major toy companies are at the toy fair to attract buyers to buy their latest and greatest products. (This makes sense, because I remember when I once attended the New York Toy Fair and Mattel and Hasbro had their areas sealed off and only open to buyers, not inventors.) Instead, because Marra Design has been bringing new Toy and Game products to market and for the past 22 years, buyers from major toy and game companies come to him!
For those of you that want the contact information for Marra Design, here you go! (Tell him Luis Aponte from "Treasure Hold 'Em" and "Global Quest" sent you!) Michael is a good guy and I think you will have a good experience with him. Good luck!
Marra Design and Associates
Website: http://www.marradesign.com/
Phone: (952) 937-8141
Fax: (952)934-1180
Email: mda1mike@aol.com
Address: 7007 Dakota Ave., Chanhassen, MN 55317
Today, I contacted Michael Marra from Marra Design Associates, LLC and I told him about how many of you were asking about him. This is why I really like the guy - we had about a 40 minute conversation on the phone about the toy and game industry; getting feedback about my idea to put my board game on the TV show called, "Shark Tank"; and games that he's created that have done well and others that did not. He's very genuine and really seems to love what he does with a sincere desire to help give people the best advice and direction.
What separates Marra Design from other Toy and Game Brokers is that they do not take your game to toy fairs and try to pitch your game or toy to major toy companies. Michael explained that this is because the major toy companies are at the toy fair to attract buyers to buy their latest and greatest products. (This makes sense, because I remember when I once attended the New York Toy Fair and Mattel and Hasbro had their areas sealed off and only open to buyers, not inventors.) Instead, because Marra Design has been bringing new Toy and Game products to market and for the past 22 years, buyers from major toy and game companies come to him!
For those of you that want the contact information for Marra Design, here you go! (Tell him Luis Aponte from "Treasure Hold 'Em" and "Global Quest" sent you!) Michael is a good guy and I think you will have a good experience with him. Good luck!
Marra Design and Associates
Website: http://www.marradesign.com/
Phone: (952) 937-8141
Fax: (952)934-1180
Email: mda1mike@aol.com
Address: 7007 Dakota Ave., Chanhassen, MN 55317
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
We're in the NEWS!!!
Great news! We ARE today's news!
I just found out this morning that Yahoo! NEWS, The San Francisco Chronicle, Dallas Morning News, and Energy Today has just published an article about our film project here on Kickstarter!
We're very excited to see our documentary film get some momentum! We can still use all the support we can get. Thank you so much!
Warm regards,
Luis Aponte
*If you haven't done so already, make to to download your eBook copy of Death of a Gas Guzzler.
*Make sure to share and keep updated with our film's progress on Kickstarter!
I just found out this morning that Yahoo! NEWS, The San Francisco Chronicle, Dallas Morning News, and Energy Today has just published an article about our film project here on Kickstarter!
We're very excited to see our documentary film get some momentum! We can still use all the support we can get. Thank you so much!
Warm regards,
Luis Aponte
*If you haven't done so already, make to to download your eBook copy of Death of a Gas Guzzler.
*Make sure to share and keep updated with our film's progress on Kickstarter!
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Cell Phone Game Version of My Board Game
So I've decided to take the advice of a toy broker; the founder of UNO; and a few friends. I've posted a job on Freelancer.com to see how much it would cost to have a cell phone game app made for one of the board games I invented. This is the first time I've used this website, but there seemed to be some talented freelancers here. After I get an estimate, I will make another Kickstarter page and keep everyone posted. Wish me luck!
Film Agent and New Movie!
Aloha everyone!
My deepest apologies for not writing for so long. A lot has happened since I have last posted a blog on my site. Someone was kind enough to write to me recently and remind me that I have not written any updates in awhile, which of course motivated me to get back on the ball!
Where to begin?! I have a few announcements that are long overdue!
In case you were wondering about my last blog, no my friend Emily and I did not make it to the last selection round of Ford's "Escape Routes" reality show. Oh well. It would have been a lot of fun, but I'm over it. Pushing forward! However, I am thrilled to announce that I self-published my nonfiction eBook about gas prices, alternative fuels and cars. It's called, “Death of a Gas Guzzler” and it is now available on Smashwords.com, iTunes, Barnes and Noble, Sony Reader, Kobo eBooks, and Diesel eBook Store for only $1.99!
My 2nd HUGE announcement is that I am now producing and raising money for my first documentary film based on my non-fiction eBook called, “Gas Prices: A Love Story”. The project is up on Kickstarter.com right now and I desperately need YOUR help to get this movie made! There’s only a few weeks left to raise the money we need and I am giving away gifts to everyone who donates. I have worked in the film and television industry for about four years and it’s time to finally make my own projects that I am passionate about and make a name for myself in the film industry. I want to take you all along on my journey, so make sure to also follow me on www.DeathOfAGasGuzzler.com; my Facebook fan page; my 2nd YouTube page; and my Twitter page.
My 3rd announcement that I am excited to share with you is that, during my blogging hiatus, my best friend and I wrote a feature-length hacker screenplay, partially based on true events (because he is a White hat hacker), and partially based on plausible future cyber threats. I cannot give any spoilers about the screenplay, but I will say that it was a lot of fun writing this movie. My best friend and I flew to Los Angeles to shop it around to different film production companies. We now have an agent that is reviewing our movie script and is very interested in representing and finding a buyer for us! Keep your fingers crossed for us. I’m incredibly thrilled and nervous at the same time!
As you can see, it’s been a busy year so far and YES, I want to get back to finding a way to self-produce my two board games, “Global Quest” and “Treasure Hold ‘Em”. Most of all, I still want to find my lost student in China, Ding Mei, even though the last investigator I hired was unsuccessful.
Within the next couple of months, I plan to create another Kickstarter project just for my board games and to hire another investigator to keep looking for my lost student in nearby major cities, such as Shanghai, China. I promise to keep you posted!
Mahalo (thank you) for the great support!
Warm regards,
Luis
My deepest apologies for not writing for so long. A lot has happened since I have last posted a blog on my site. Someone was kind enough to write to me recently and remind me that I have not written any updates in awhile, which of course motivated me to get back on the ball!
Where to begin?! I have a few announcements that are long overdue!
In case you were wondering about my last blog, no my friend Emily and I did not make it to the last selection round of Ford's "Escape Routes" reality show. Oh well. It would have been a lot of fun, but I'm over it. Pushing forward! However, I am thrilled to announce that I self-published my nonfiction eBook about gas prices, alternative fuels and cars. It's called, “Death of a Gas Guzzler” and it is now available on Smashwords.com, iTunes, Barnes and Noble, Sony Reader, Kobo eBooks, and Diesel eBook Store for only $1.99!
My 2nd HUGE announcement is that I am now producing and raising money for my first documentary film based on my non-fiction eBook called, “Gas Prices: A Love Story”. The project is up on Kickstarter.com right now and I desperately need YOUR help to get this movie made! There’s only a few weeks left to raise the money we need and I am giving away gifts to everyone who donates. I have worked in the film and television industry for about four years and it’s time to finally make my own projects that I am passionate about and make a name for myself in the film industry. I want to take you all along on my journey, so make sure to also follow me on www.DeathOfAGasGuzzler.com; my Facebook fan page; my 2nd YouTube page; and my Twitter page.
My 3rd announcement that I am excited to share with you is that, during my blogging hiatus, my best friend and I wrote a feature-length hacker screenplay, partially based on true events (because he is a White hat hacker), and partially based on plausible future cyber threats. I cannot give any spoilers about the screenplay, but I will say that it was a lot of fun writing this movie. My best friend and I flew to Los Angeles to shop it around to different film production companies. We now have an agent that is reviewing our movie script and is very interested in representing and finding a buyer for us! Keep your fingers crossed for us. I’m incredibly thrilled and nervous at the same time!
As you can see, it’s been a busy year so far and YES, I want to get back to finding a way to self-produce my two board games, “Global Quest” and “Treasure Hold ‘Em”. Most of all, I still want to find my lost student in China, Ding Mei, even though the last investigator I hired was unsuccessful.
Within the next couple of months, I plan to create another Kickstarter project just for my board games and to hire another investigator to keep looking for my lost student in nearby major cities, such as Shanghai, China. I promise to keep you posted!
Mahalo (thank you) for the great support!
Warm regards,
Luis
Monday, August 23, 2010
Toy Broker List
When I finally submitted my second game, Treasure Hold 'Em t in 2010 to Marra Design and Associates (the same toy broker I hired for Global Quest), I was very pleased and impressed with how much market research they did for me in terms of determining the true potential for my game. Most importantly, I respect people that do not sugar-coat their professional opinions and present a good argument supporting their thoughts. Ultimately, after taking different perspectives into account, I still have to make my own decision and take responsibility for my own actions. I am a firm believer in taking what you like, throwing out the rest, see what happens, adjust, then try again.
For example, perhaps you read my interview with Ed Akerman - the Legendary Man Who Launched UNO. I asked him what he would advise other new inventors, based on his experience? He suggested getting a toy agent/broker and contacting major toy companies directly in order to see if might give you 15 minutes to pitch your game. I liked the idea, so that is exactly what I did. One of the companies I contacted was Hasbro. They have indie inventors trying to contact them all the time; which is why that have a list of respected toy brokers for you to use to pitch your idea for you. The following is a list of seasoned professionals in the toy and game industry. The standard fee for them to evaluate you invention is usually around $125-$150 per game. Trust me when I say that this is NOT a big money maker for toy agents. From what I understand, this is simply a fee used to weed out every Jack and Jane Doe who simply wants to send out the 1,000's of half-baked ideas stored in a notebook with no real ambition to bring their inventions into the marketplace. for the past two years, this has been a great learning experience that has come from lots of trial and errors. Everything that I learn, I am happy to share it with you. I hope this has been helpful. Beast of luck with your ambitions and please share your experiences (positive or negative) with us!
The following list of Toy Brokers/Agents are featured on the Hasbro website. Disclaimer: I do not necessarily endorse or promote any of these particular agents. I encourage you to do your research on each of these individuals listed and make your own best judgments. I have personally used Marra Design Associates, Inc and was very pleased with the thorough and honest feedback they gave me for Global Quest. I also had the privilege to meet Mary Cousins from Discover Games at last year's New York International Toy Fair. In 2009, Ms. Cousins received an entrepreneur award at this highly respected trade show. The extensive experience and backgrounds of these brokers can help you avoid a lot of unnecessary mistakes that I have made in the past. Then again, reading my blog could help you avoid a lot of mistakes as well, lol. Enjoy!
Mike and Lynn Marra (USA)
MARRA DESIGN ASSOCIATES, INC.
7007 Dakota Avenue
Chanhassen, MN 55317
952-937-8141
Fax: 952-934-1180
Email: MDA1Mike@aol.com
www.marradesign.com
George Delaney (USA)
DELANEY PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
6956 Hawthorne Lane
Hanover Park, IL 60133
630-289-1583
Fax: 630-837-2952
Email: delaney369@att.net
Jonathan Becker (USA)
ANJAR COMPANY
New Product Submission Department
42 Russet Road
Stamford, CT 06903
203-321-1023
Fax: 203-321-1079
Email: jsb@anjar.com
www.anjar.com
Andrew Berton/Adam Wolff (USA/UK)
EXCEL DEVELOPMENT GROUP
1123 Mount Curve Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55403-1128
612-374-3233
Fax: 612-377-0865
Email : info@exceld.com
www.exceld.com
Mary Couzin (USA)
DISCOVER GAMES
6842 N. Kilpatrick Ave.
Lincolnwood, IL 60712
Tel: 847-677-8277
Email: discovergames@hotmail.com
Peter Carr (USA)
CACTUS MARKETING SERVICES
1553 South Military Highway, Suite 101
Chesapeake, VA 23320
888-215-7040
Fax: 757-366-9913
E-mail: cactuspete@cavtel.net
www.cactusmarketing.com
Howard Fleischer (USA/EUROPE)
ROYALTY PROS
20 West 22nd Street, Suite 1503
New York, NY 10010
212-366-6876
Fax: 212-366-6862
Email: info@royaltypros.com
www.royaltypros.com
Paul Lapidus (USA)
NEWFUNTIERS
1936 Balzac Court
Redding, CA 96003
800-846-0701 Toll free US & Canada
Voice: 530-223-3330
Fax: 530-223-3033
E-mail: Paul_Lapidus@newfuntiers.com
www.newfuntiers.com
Ronald Hofstaetter (EUROPE)
WHITE CASTLE GAMES
MuseumsQuartier, Museumsplatz 1/6
A-1070 Vienna Austria
(43) 1 522 04 78
Fax: (43) 1 522 04 78
Email: r.hofstaetter@whitecastle.at
www.whitecastle.at
Mike Moody (UK)
SEVEN TOWNS LTD.
7 Lambton Place
London W11 2SH United Kingdom
(44) 20 7727 5666
Fax: (44) 20 7221 0363
Email: mikem@seventowns.com
www.7towns.com
BRITISH TOY & HOBBY ASSOCIATION (UK)
80 Camberwell Road
London SE5 0EG United Kingdom
(44) 20 7701 7271
Fax: (44) 20 7708 2437
Email: admin@btha.co.uk
www.btha.co.uk
Richard Brown (UK)
CACTUS MARKETING SERVICES
109A Hamilton Road
Felixstowe, Suffolk IP11 7BL United Kingdom
(44) 800-389-8408
Fax: 01394-275275
E-mail: games@cactus marketing.com
www.catusmarketing.com
Dugald Keith (Australia)
Imaginiff Design
17 Viva Street
Glen Iris
Victoria 3146, Australia
61 3 9509 9551
Fax: 61 3 9509 9551
Email: skeith@bigpond.net.au
Malcolm Hall (Australia)
Malcolm Hall & Associates
P.O. Box 171
Asburton, VIC 3147 Australia
613-9886-9122
Fax: 613-9886-9133
Email: mha@ozonline.com.au
Alex Holzer (Australia)
Blue Opal Australia Pty Ltd.
135 Bamfield Road
Heidelberg West
Victoria 3081, Australia
61 3 9450 9800
Fax: 61 3 9450 9850
www.blueopal.com.au
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
An Inspiring Story
I just returned home from my very first clinical trial and I am relieved to say that I am perfectly healthy with no side-effects to report. LOL. That is a sentence I never imagined I would ever be writing, much less sharing with the world.
I've only been home for about an hour and I am already at the library researching more information about the toy and game industry, as well as researching more literary agents to contact for my nonfiction book. I found an inspiring story about a fellow toy inventor who had followed his dream to the point that he was down to $5.62 in his bank account. After a lot of endurance, faith, and help from family and friends, he was able to share this incredible success story. Check out this article to read the whole story:
The Toy Story: An Inventor’s Dream Come True
~Luis
www.GlobalQuestGame.com
I've only been home for about an hour and I am already at the library researching more information about the toy and game industry, as well as researching more literary agents to contact for my nonfiction book. I found an inspiring story about a fellow toy inventor who had followed his dream to the point that he was down to $5.62 in his bank account. After a lot of endurance, faith, and help from family and friends, he was able to share this incredible success story. Check out this article to read the whole story:
The Toy Story: An Inventor’s Dream Come True
~Luis
www.GlobalQuestGame.com
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