Do you ever find yourself buying something, and you think to yourself: “Why didn’t I think of this?” We’re sure we all did.
These random and painfully simple products that anyone could have thought of are quite underlooked. Seemingly, they’re not really million-dollar ideas, yet their owners and inventors have already gained over a million if not several because of these simple ideas.
In this video, we’ll be listing quite a few of these simple ideas and inventions that have gained millions.
The Pet Rock
First and foremost on our list is possibly the most absurd one. In the ’70s, Gary Dahl earned himself a whopping $15 million in his first six months of business by selling… A pet rock. The toy was obviously bizarre and absurd, but it quickly became a trend that took over many Americans’ hearts. He sure did earn a lot from just a rock.
The Slinky
After the most absurd comes the most well-known toy for children of all time, the slinky. Everyone knows of or has heard of the simple coiled metal that brilliantly utilizes gravity and momentum. It was first introduced in the 1940s. As of now, Richard T. James, the inventor of this simple bouncy toy, has earned a little more than $250 million.
The Snuggy
Then-freshman at the University of Maine, Gary Clegg, would probably have laughed at you if you told him that in 20 years his invention would earn $200 Million.
The Snuggy is marketed as a goofy blanket with sleeves, one of the most comfortable things to wear. The convenient piece of cloth that’s very easy to make went from a ridiculed infomercial product to a household item in the late ’90s.
The Smiley Face
$500 million. That’s how much a simple drawing of a smiley face raked in for lucky Frenchman Franklin Loufrani. It was sold to him for a measly amount of only 45 dollars and he patented it, starting a company known as the Smiley Company.
45 dollars to half a billion? That’s an incredibly absurd profit of $499, 999, 955.
The Wacky Wall Walker
You may or may not know what it was initially called, but everyone is sure to be familiar with this simple and slimy toy, that when thrown against a wall, appears to crawl down it.
It was originally a Chinese toy that didn’t really sell for much. When it was brought to the United States, it was greeted with very high popularity and demand that translated to a franchise worth $80 million.
The SantaMail
As children, we all believed that Santa was real and that all the letters we wrote ended up in him reading them. Who would have thought that a company offering a place where children can send letters to a fictional character and would be greeted with so much love?
The company is stationed in the North Pole, Alaska, and they make millions every year by receiving fan mail intended for the man in red with the large belly and bellowing voice.
Beanie Babies
Although Ty Warner and his company Ty Inc. no longer earn a lot from his toys, beanie babies amassed an incredible total of $3 and $6 billion at his peak.
Beanie babies are simple cute toys that were surprisingly sold without using a single ad campaign or being sold through major toy stores. That’s quite an achievement!
Magic: The Gathering
In 1993 Richard Garfield struck gold when he invented the game. It was the first of its kind, being the pioneer of trading card games, followed by the likes of well-known Trading Card Game franchises like Pokemon and Yu-gi-oh.
Magic: The Gathering was released in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast, which is now a subsidiary of Hasbro and estimated to have 35 million players worldwide. Since its release, an estimated twenty BILLION Magic: The gathering cards have been manufactured, and it’s a company that has raked in a billion dollars from it.
The Spanx
Sara Blakely couldn’t have imagined that her cutting off the bottom of her pantyhose would domino effect itself into a company that’s worth $1 billion. She had only $5,000 in her savings, but she researched and wrote her patent for a footless pantyhose.
Despite being told several times that it would never sell by many owners, one lucky person decided to give her a chance and help her sell what was once regarded as a crazy idea. If there’s anything we’ve learned, it’s to never give up on an idea even if people try to bring you down from $5000 with a lot of perseverance to $1 Billion.
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