Thine cup shalt never overfloweth

The Liquid Holster was designed after Carissa Gordon felt she needed a versatile drinks holder. Picture / Dean Purcell

As it's busy soaking up the demand for its clever innovation, Auckland company Liquid Holster is a strong example of how personal needs can become a business idea.

Four months after the launch of its self-levelling drink holder, the three brains behind the product can't help feeling surprised at how popular it's proving here and overseas.

The idea's simple - an attachable cup holder that keeps drinks upright, stable and within arm's length while you're on the move.

New mum Carissa Gordon discovered this was what she needed when she took baby daughter Paris for walks in her mountain buggy.

Her frustration at having nowhere to put her drink bottle led to a concept that appeals not only to other mothers, but to cyclists, boaties, golfers and people in wheelchairs.

Husband Craig and his business partner, Kent Nixon, seized on the idea and designs and prototypes evolved over a year.

Nixon said at first they could not believe there wasn't anything similar on the market.

Strong interest from distributors in the baby, marine, golf, bike, wheelchair and gym markets early on provided the confidence to tool up.

The resulting 'Liquid Holster' attaches to a range of tube sizes, accommodates various shapes of bottles and cans, and is self-levelling so the drink stays upright regardless of the terrain.

Production started in August and the three went to one of the world's largest annual baby expos in the desert city of Las Vegas.

Although it was early days, they realised they could not afford to miss the four-day show as it could have meant losing a year and risking someone else beating them to the market with a rival product.

With one of the smallest stands at the show, the three relied on a bold approach to promotions, attaching the holsters to prams all over the show grounds. Their presence made such an impact that people were seeking out the site to find out how they could buy them.

"Kiwis always come up with the cool stuff," was the common response from American shoppers.

Craig Gordon said they had hoped to come away with a major agent for the US baby market. Instead they scooped up a worldwide agent for baby and golf products.

"To pick up a distributor that had a worldwide base, not just the US, has been our biggest coup. They're strong in the golf and baby market," he said.

Liquid Holster is stocked in 30 stores in the US but the company is expecting the results of this relationship to take off in the new year.

The company sold 160 units at Auckland's three-day Parent & Child Show in October.

The Baby Factory said they had never known more of one single product to be sold at the show.

The $39.95 holsters are stocked at baby, sports and marine outlets nationwide.

They're being introduced in baby shops in Australia at the moment and are already available in most golf shops there.

About 20,000 units have been sold so far and, after such a short period of time, the three are surprised at how often they see the products around.

Carissa Gordon cannot resist a sales pitch when she sees a bottle rolling around the bottom of a pushchair.

For Craig Gordon, who previously ran a landscaping firm, and Nixon, an architect with a project management background, Liquid Holster is now a fulltime business.

Now the Gordons are planning to return to Auckland from the Hawkes Bay because the business has quickly become too big to manage from a distance.

The personal investment in the company has been huge. With $70,000 required for the tooling alone, the set up costs have required both partners to sell their houses for funding.

"It was a scary thing to be doing," said Nixon.

Some of the biggest costs have come recently with the legal and patent expenses to enter the US market.

Because it's a small New Zealand company, a lot of these payments have been required up-front.

Craig Gordon said one of the reasons they had moved so quickly was to protect their product.

Being beaten to the market was something they were extremely nervous about throughout the development phase."Speed is our best protection to stop knock-offs."