Photo: Kristin Jacobson, Katie Kupstas, and Tod Kusptas
Katie, you and Kristin Jacobson, along with your husband Tod Kupstas launched Inventor’s Club Worldwide. Tell us about your background and why this was a perfect partnership.
Kristin, Tod and I have each spent years driving results for a variety of different businesses. I spent most of my early career working for luxury retail corporations and helped launch new products in the Washington DC and Philadelphia markets through PR, merchandising and events.
My husband, Tod Kupstas is a patent attorney and former patent examiner. He’s worked as an in-house corporate patent attorney, as well as run a successful private legal practice. Tod is well known for his ability to navigate complicated patent law, and he has an impressive success rate and ethical approach to work. However, along the way he’s encountered lots of inventors who have been exposed to dishonesty and unfair business practices. He’s worked with inventors for 20 years and has literally seen it all! It was his work over the years that highlighted a real gap of knowledge and need for help within the inventor and startup community.
Tod and I partnered with Kristin Jaobson, a business leader with 20 years of business operations and marketing experience. She’s helped many brands grow, from enterprise level companies, to startups whose products have appeared on Shark Tank and Oprah’s Favorite Things. All of our combined experience, plus our passion for helping inventors succeed makes us perfect partners to help Inventors Club Worldwide’s overall mission.
Kristin, same question.
When Katie told me a few years ago about her mission to help inventors and startups get the honest information, education and support they need, I was thrilled to help! We have worked together for years on various non-profit endeavors and I saw Inventors Club Worldwide as a perfect opportunity for us to use our business backgrounds in a new and meaningful way. Between Tod’s background and expertise in intellectual property law, Katie’s experience with sales and PR, and my experience in growth marketing; we are able to advise on the most critical components necessary for an entrepreneur to bring their idea to market.
Tell us about the Inventor’s Club Worldwide.
Inventors Club Worldwide is a non-profit with a mission to help educate and inspire inventors and entrepreneurs and ensure they have a complete understanding of their options as they bring their product or idea to market.
What are some of the challenges Inventors are facing?
There are many challenges inventors must face when bringing their initial idea to life. Inventors often have trouble finding the right engineering team, a reliable manufacturer, securing funds for production costs and distribution, understanding intellectual property rights or branding and marketing their product. Above all of these business obstacles is another common practice: unethical companies who prey on the inventor and startup community to sell them services they don’t need or promise them the moon after signing over their ownership rights. Inventor’s Club Worldwide helps ease some of this burden. We have a solid team of experts in the startup space, who can help guide inventors and entrepreneurs through all the business decisions they face. We offer advice on IP protection, business operation and marketing-all while looking out for those trying to take advantage of our members!
What resources are offered at the Inventor’s Club Worldwide?
We offer weekly networking sessions, a mastermind video series, and facilitate access to mentors and experts in the startup space who can provide mentoring either directly through office hours or via group Q&A; as well as self-guided documents, videos and eBooks. With membership rates ranging from $29 to $599 per year, we have something to offer any inventor or startup, no matter what stage their product or business is at.
“I’ve learned more in Inventor’s Club Worldwide in the last year, than in my total 10 years of inventing,” according to David Svengalis, Inventor of The Han-D Icer. Tell us about David.
David Svengalis is an inventor who joined ICW about a year ago when he was looking into licensing his invention, the Hand-d-Icer. David has since invented games and is in talks to bring those to market as well! He’s also been invaluable at giving advice for any new inventors joining our group, we are really grateful to have David as part of our community.
What are the topics you cover in your Master Classes?
We’re always brainstorming new ideas for master classes we feel will add value to our community. Some of the master classes we’ve taught in the past were on topics such as: Building your first Prototype, Marketing your product for Retail, and Intellectual Property as a business asset.
What excites you the most going into the Fall?
We are so excited. This fall in October, we have our first annual ICW Inspiration through Innovation Awards ™, where we honor inventors or startups who’ve brought an innovative idea to market. We literally can’t wait for the event! It’s going to be an amazing opportunity for our community to learn more about presenting their product or idea, learn about what to include in a pitch deck, get products in front of a wider audience, and possibly connect some people to business opportunities.
Katie and Kristin, Why is the Inventor’s Club Worldwide the place for Inventors to thrive?
If you’re an inventor, it can be difficult to find people who understand your passion and are invested in helping you succeed. Inventor’s Club Worldwide has been the place for inventors to thrive since 2016. We’re a supportive community of inventors, professional experts, mentors, and like-minded entrepreneurs that help inspire one another to bring our dreams to life.
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