Jim Jamieson
Province
Windowstick inventor Robert Allen demonstrates the use of his patented home-alarm device.
Robert Allen had a great idea one day in 2001 when he was driving away from a jobsite near Qualicum Beach.
It occurred to the construction contractor that he could tell from a distance which patio doors and windows weren’t locked and they would be easy pickings if he were a burglar.
“All it takes is one unopened window that a guy can see from the street to be the sole reason your house is burgled,” said Allen, who’s based in Parksville.
Allen’s great idea was to design and market a sophisticated type of “stick” that would do the same job as the piece of wood his customers often asked him to cut for them, to fit in the window or door’s metal channel and act as a low-tech burglar deterrent.
Five years later, Allen and his business partners — his wife, Jackie, and Ray Therrien — have invested more than a half-million dollars in the three-person company and now have their WindowStick device sold in 207 Wal-Mart stores across Canada.
The company got its first big break last fall when Wal-Mart OK’d demos in five of its stores.
The WindowStick (www.windowstick.com), which retails for $25 to $30, adjusts to fit any size sliding door or window and gives off a 110-decibel alarm when someone tries to dislodge it.
“Sales are great, better than anticipated,” said Allen, 47, who couldn’t disclose numbers.
WindowStick also is being sold at independently-owned stores. Allen said he’s about to receive delivery of his third 15,000-unit shipment from his Chinese manufacturer — three months ahead of schedule — to satisfy demand.
Turning an idea into a product on store shelves was challenging.
“We started in 2001 defining the product, going through the patent process, making it affordable, sourcing out manufacturing, setting up the company, doing test markets,” he said.
Allen tried to keep his contracting business going, but had to quit to work on his new venture full time.
“I’ve got more than one mortgage on my house now, you give up holidays, you give up a lot to build the dream,” he said.
© The Vancouver Province 2006