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INNOVATION RESOURCES

LoveSac, The Quest for Comfort

Breakthrough:
The LoveSac started as a huge beanbag-type of chair designed to be more comfortable than a couch, but has morphed into a furniture product line that includes "Sactionals," comforters, pillows, mattress toppers and more.

Inventor:
Shawn Nelson, United States

Financial reward:
$40 million

The Story:
LoveSac, The Quest for Comfort

Shawn Nelson, decided that watching TV on his couch just wasn't very comfortable. Envisioning something like a huge beanbag, he bought 14 yards of vinyl and spent three weeks stuffing it with foam that he chopped up by hand. The finished LoveSac was seven feet wide, and everyone who tried it, loved it.

Neighbors started asking him for replicas, and almost as a joke, Nelson decided to start a company. He made his LoveSacs in his parent's basement and started selling them at trade shows.

Suddenly, he got a call from Too Inc. requesting 12,000 LoveSacs, and the rest was history. But not an easy history.

He racked up $55,000 of debt on his credit card building a factory, and worked 19-hour days trying to fill the order, which ended up eating all his profits. There had to be an easier way.

What about opening a mall store? It proved to be the winning idea and now more than 55 franchise stores are selling over $40 million a year.

From the humble LoveSac, Nelson's business has grown to include "Sactionals" – furniture that can be assembled in sections and easily moved up stairs or into tight spaces. Most of his furniture gets used in TV rooms, but the Sactionals clean, simple design also look great in an office. He is always looking for innovative ideas to make you comfortable.

LoveSacs are so popular that even Madonna takes hers on tour.

Recently Nelson was a contestant on "The Rebel Billionaire: Branson's Quest for the Best," and traveled the world reliving some of Richard Branson's own personal adventures, including, flying at zero graving and rappelling down a London skyscraper.

Nelson ended up the winner of the contest, and received a check from Branson for $1 million, and took the helm of the Virgin companies for three months – an invaluable internship into the inner workings of a mega-successful company.

As well as building the LoveSac brand at home and in China, Nelson gives lectures on campus about entrepreneurship – from opening stores, to manufacturing overseas.

His wife, Tiffany, is a concert pianist and also a retail entrepreneur with her own shoe boutique called Pears. The couple has a 2-year-old daughter, Lucky Nelson, and are expecting a son in June.

Check out his website [LOVESAC.COM]

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