CLIFTON, Va. - Ron Markwood knows customers will come swarming when he pours hot water into the butterfly mug. Working from a craft show booth, he pours, stands back and waits as customers watch the transformation of a once-black butterfly scene into an intricate, colorful piece of artwork.
"That butterfly mug is a real crowd stopper," says Markwood, a Pittsburgh-based Wondermugs, Inc., distributor.
Markwood is referring to a unique concept that Wondermugs founder Jim Simpson likens to the "next Beanie Babies." And if this federal government economist who in 1994 left bureaucracy behind to explore his artistic and entrepreneurial bent has his way, the mugs will far surpass those bean-filled toys in popularity.
Simpson, 49, came upon the idea for his company after learning of thermochromatic inks. Incorporated in mug decorations, these inks change when a hot drink is added. Simpson had never seen such a product offered in the retail market, but recognized the potential.
With little cash and dim prospects of getting financed, Simpson relied on his good credit rating to get started. "I had cards from 10 credit card companies who became the unwitting venture capitalists for Wondermugs," he says.
Armed with a single Christmas design created by his sister, Simpson attracted the attention of a buyer from a large Hallmark franchise early on. Come back with another design, she said, and we'll give you an order.
"We scurried about perfecting another design," recalls Simpson, "but when we went back to the buyer, she acted as if she'd never heard of us." Surprised but undaunted, Simpson took his creations to the New York Gift Show and came back with big orders from Belk Store Services, Inc., and Strawbridge and Clothier.
Today, Wondermugs is the only company with an extensive line of high-quality, color-changing mugs available to the retail market. Along with nature and holiday scenes, the company's 80 plus designs also include sports, occupations, humorous and spiritual themes.
The mugs sell for $11.95 and are available nationally through the company's Web site and catalog.
Wondermugs are also sold by distributors like Markwood at craft shows, kiosks in shopping malls and other venues. Entrepreneurs purchase distributor packages from Simpson, who created the marketing program himself.
Manufactured by a Texas factory that Wondermugs merged with, many of the mug designs incorporate artwork by prominent artists like Scott Tubby, whose work has appeared in the famous Renwick Gallery in Washington, D.C., and Eric Mohn, a quadriplegic who paints by holding a brush in his mouth.
From concept to completion, each new mug design takes anywhere from two to 12 months. "Each design is first sketched out by myself, my sister or an artist," he says. "Then the finished work is transformed into two designs - a 'before' and an 'after.' The designs are then screened onto standard porcelain mugs."
Looking ahead, Simpson says Wondermugs, which has appeared on local and nationally syndicated news shows and newspapers, will expand both domestically and internationally while also creating new "show stopping" designs.
"Go to any craft show or festival and look for the booth with a big crowd
around it," says Simpson, "and that's where you'll find us."
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