IU student sees growth on Amazon with kitchen product
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A junior at the Indiana University Kelley School of Business is seeing early success with a simple kitchen tool that’s being sold on Amazon Prime.
Jack Wax first came up with the idea for The Handless Handle while still in high school to help improve access to the new hidden garbage can cabinet in his parents’ renovated kitchen.
The product is a simple, easy-to-attach device that allows users to open cabinets and drawers with their foot.
Wax told Inside INdiana Business that the idea to turn his product into a business took hold when he joined the IU Innovates program.
“I was able to just learn so much in different ways,” he said. “Every business is different, but there’s a lot of kind of overlap that I was able to take from people, like learning how to communicate with suppliers, learning how to do financials and learning social media business. So I was able to consume a lot of different business acumen from just a diverse group of people, and I think being able to kind of mesh that into into my business style and my company has really been the the key to success.”
Once he was able to find a manufacturer overseas, Wax said he invested a total of about $9,000 to get his first units ordered. He used extensive customer reviews to refine The Handless Handle to incorporate features such as a screw-free installation system that won’t damage cabinetry.
The company just recently surpassed $200,000 in sales and 12,000 units sold, Wax said. Now, he is looking toward additional growth with additional color options but also potential expansion into business-to-business markets.
“I’d like to be growing over 100% per year,” Wax said. “That’s a tough goal, but if I expand correctly, I think I can get there. I think there’s opportunities to get in stores.”
Before he can get to that point, Wax said he’s looking to grow his presence on Amazon and also boost his PR and marketing efforts.
Currently, Wax is a team of one with help from a contractor to handle the Amazon business. He is preparing to study abroad in Milan this semester, which adds to the challenge of running a business, he said, but it’s a challenge he’s excited for.
Wax reiterated his happiness in choosing the IU even without knowing exactly what he wanted to do as a career, and the connections he’s made at the Kelley School have been crucial in his early success.
“Being surrounded at a university is not only great for the peer network, but I’ve been able to connect with professors who have helped me on pricing and even wholesale pricing, stuff I just wouldn’t be able to do very well,” he said. “Just really being in the environment that wants students to curate businesses and to do what I’m doing is has been the biggest blessing.”