Fun for the Whole Family

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Michael Radigan, CEO of Floppy Spike Inc., located in Newport Beach, CA, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Floppy Spike’s business is helping kids grow and develop while inspiring their imagination and creativity. No child should ever be left out of the fun, so whether your child is a future star athlete or is rising through developmental challenges, everyone gets to play together. It’s truly about having fun! Floppy Spike is a soft, flexible frisbee for kids. It’s easy to throw and easy to catch at all skill levels. Don’t be surprised when the family pet gets involved too. It’s safe, non-toxic, and manufactured in the United States with food-safe materials sourced in the United States. What game will your family create with Floppy Spike?

Tell us about yourself

I got started on this project by being in the right place at the right time while doing consulting for a business. More than three decades ago, Floppy Spike was the brainchild of a world-renowned inventor and artist. To him, outdoor play was the same old look: balls and discs. But kids love shapes and colors, and who doesn’t love the magic of something that doesn’t look like it should fly, soaring through the air as it wobbles and oscillates. The soft material made sure it didn’t hurt your car when it inevitably got hit, and it was easy to throw and catch for all skill levels.

It became a sensation in Southern California. The inventor and now co-owner went on to continue to impact the juvenile products world with inventions such as the dripless sipper cup and the award-winning Fisher-Price On-the-Go Baby Dome [among many others]. Floppy Spike reentered the market in 2018 when he and I were looking through his invention archives. There we were, two grown men playing like kids in the driveway, and who would have thought how much the family dog would have loved it too. The product went back into production nearly immediately, and since then, I have grown our national distribution, and Floppy Spike continues to add smiles to every backyard where it flies.

I have a unique and diverse background. I started off as a mechanical engineer and then spent nearly 20 years in the Marine Corps flying helicopters, both on active duty and in the Reserves. As a disabled veteran, I have consulted in the art world, and done software development. I have had extensive experience in operations and project management, but my heart has always been in service to others. I wanted this product to make sure no kid ever gets left out of the fun. I will never forget the smile of a coworker when he saw his son, who struggled with fine motor skills, finally, succeed in playing catch with his sister. Children are bursting at the seams with creativity, and I have seen Floppy Spike be the spark that inspired the next favorite game and even be used with food!

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest accomplishment as a business owner was getting that first sale. The small monetary return does not tell the story of all the hard work to get the product to market. I did an exhaustive search for the right material, made in the US, that had the right properties and performance to be safe for the whole family. I was adamant about finding a manufacturer here in the US to support the local economy. There were the late nights and long weekends to design packaging, build a website and social content, establish distribution, etc. So, to some, it may sound small to get a sale for a toy that’s less than $20, but to me, it was a massive undertaking that utilized every discipline I have learned over the course of my professional career.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

One of the hardest things as a business owner is finding creative ways to get your product in as many hands as possible and as fast as possible. You must evangelize it wherever you go, but the payoff is you never know how the connections you make along the way can help get you to that next level. When you believe in your mission, the small wins you get along the way begin to snowball into bigger and bigger opportunities.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Don’t be afraid to fail. Don’t wait for the perfect plan or the perfect opportunity. Take the 80% solution and run with it. You will learn along the way and trust that when challenges arise, you will find a solution.
Think big. Explore opportunities to scale not just one sale at a time, but how can you do it 1000 sales at a time.
Run your business with integrity. Never cut corners on your integrity.
Every connection you make in business has the potential to come back and support you later when you need it. Take care of people, and the business will be rewarded 10-fold.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://floppyspike.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/floppyspike/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/floppyspike/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/floppyspike
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldradigan/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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