Monetizing the Making–upcoming kwartzlab talk–March 1

(source photo at right: Ron Daniels, photo mashup & manipulation: DW)

Ron Daniels, R/C aircraft designer, MBA, and chemist, gives a talk on his experience with continuous design improvement, outsourcing manufacturing, licensing designs, customer relations, and dealing with the competition. Come join us. Free-no-pay.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011 – doors open at 7pm, talk begins at 7:30, runs until 8:30pm

@ kwartzlab – 283 Duke St. W – Kitchener
Parking on Breithaupt St. – http://kwartzlab.ca/events

Please spread the word on your favourite social media, and print and post this poster for the conscientious objectors and uninitiated.  Here’s a bio for Ron.

Having had some success in engaging the arts community over the past year [0][1][2][3][4][5][6], I’ve been on the lookout for some other business-savvy makers who had some experience transitioning from one-off prototypes to production volumes and actually making some money from the thing they love to do.

As luck (favouring me for showing up) would have it, I met Ron Daniels at The Communitech Hub at the tail end of the Art Allies show earlier this month.  Ron and I got talking about the remote control flight domain and it was quickly apparent that he’s not your average hobbyist.   He actually *designs* planes to have certain properties (both for flying and construction), and has sold his kits, having outsourced the manufacturing (laser cut balsa wood frames, vacuum-formed plastic canopies, etc).  We had a great discussion at the coat rack about iterative design improvement, competitive threats, manufacturing challenges, and brand protection.  We also talked about the effect of completing a Laurier MBA while Ron was running his kit business.

Ron generously agreed to give a talk at kwartzlab about his experience.  I’m hoping this will inspire more makers to take the next step to start making money from their passion, which in a lot of cases, makes the making self-sustaining.

Happy making,

DW