Feeding America

OnTray is proud to donate a percentage of sales to a great organization, Feeding America, and today our donation was doubled thanks to a generous grant from Ameriprise Financial.

Click on the Feeding America logo above to be taken to their donation page and make your contribution today. It'll be doubled...how great is that?!?!

How About $5,000?

Here's a fun little contest I just heard about (thanks http://www.chicgalleria.com/). Click the above graphic for your chance to win a grand prize of $5,000 or a monthly giveaway of $200.00! Good luck!

OnTray; A Great Stocking Stuffer

BabyLuxeDaily thinks OnTray makes a GREAT stocking stuffer. Read what they have to say in their Sunday Stocking Stuffer section!

Great New OnTray Review!

OnTray & I Are Featured On MarketMommies.com!

OnTray, The Perfect Stocking Stuffer!

Check us out on Mommy Perks Holiday Gift Guide in the Under $10.00 section. There's a special offer which makes giving an OnTray, as a stocking stuffer, even better!

Hybrid Mom & OnTray

OnTray was selected as one of the Hybrid Mom100 in their first ever Gift Guide! After considering an astonishing number of submissions, they selected OnTray to be part of this one-of-a-kind issue. I'm thrilled and honored to be a part of this group!

Half Off Mellow Yellow OnTray's!

I just took inventory and I ordered way too many Mellow Yellow OnTray's! I'm offering them half off while supplies last!
http://www.ontray2go.com/BuyNow.htm

Another OnTray Giveaway!

OnTray giveaways are popping up all over the place! BabyLuxe{daily} is an adorable site for all things hip for baby, so head on over and check them out. Don't forget to enter to win a FREE OnTray. Good luck!

OnTray Giveaway!

Between now and the the 10th of November, enter to win an OnTray from one of my favorite OnTray retailer's, mom4life.com. The contest is on their blog, http://blog.mom4life.com/. Enter today and good luck!

OnTray, Facebook and 200 Fans!

Are you on Facebook? Are you a fan of OnTray? Visit our OnTray Fan Page and become a fan. When we reach 200 fans, one lucky person will win a FREE OnTray. Will it be you?

Macy's and OnTray...On The Same Mission!

I'm not sure if you're aware of this or not but recently I have decided to give a percentage of OnTray's sales to a great organization, Feeding America. While OnTray's sales aren't enormous, I feel that every bit helps and I'm thrilled to be able to do what I can.

A company that can do enormous things, Macy's, is helping to provide 10 million meals for Feeding America. Amazing! Visit Macy's site today to learn more about how you can help in this great cause!

OnTray in Canada...Finally!

FINALLY! OnTray now has a distributor in Canada! I have been able to ship here and there to Canada, but shipping costs were just getting out of control. Stores in Canada now can contact www.kidsmartshop.com for wholesale information.

OnTray on 10TV Columbus

I had the absolute privilege of being interviewed and filmed by our local CBS station, 10TV, last week. The segment aired on September 2nd. Here is the link if you'd like to read the story and see the video.

http://www.10tv.com/live/content/femalefocus/stories/2009/09/02/story_ontray.html?sid=102

The Full Mommy: OnTray: Take That Snack With You

Love Google Alerts! Every time something is written about OnTray, I find out! Check out this latest review!


The Full Mommy: OnTray: Take That Snack With You

New OnTray Review & Giveaway

New OnTray review and giveaway from Blogger Mommies. What a neat, new review site run by women who own their own baby store in Colorado. Visit their site today to see what they think of OnTray and enter for your chance to win! Good luck!

OnTray and Columbus Business First

Kid-inspired trays finding audience at home, abroad

Business First of Columbus - by Jan O’Daniel Freelance 8/14/2009

Three rambunctious and ravenous kids, a trip to a Giant Eagle grocery store, and one harried mom equals chaos. Unless you’re Laura Hamrick, in which case it becomes the catalyst for a stay-at-home mom to become a successful inventor and entrepreneur.

“I spent an exhausting and unsuccessful grocery trip handing out snacks one by one to my young sons while trying to look through coupons and fill the cart,” she says. “I left the store frazzled and frustrated with only half the items on my grocery list.”

Vowing never to go through that experience again, Hamrick put the kids down for a nap on that November 2005 afternoon and jumped on the computer looking for anything she could use to help pacify her boys while shopping.

Expecting thousands of search results, she was astonished to find nothing that fit the bill. So she quickly sketched a design for a durable, portable plastic tray to clip onto any grocery cart handle, and OnTray was born.

Small and lightweight, it features a sliding, attachable lid and tray clip for toting snacks, toys, crayons and coupons to the store while keeping them within easy reach. But becoming an award-winning inventor practically overnight was never the plan for this former sales executive with a degree in early childhood development.

“I was happy being a stay-at-home mom,” says Hamrick, 35, who sells the product through her company named 42 Kids. “I thought I would go home and find a simple product online. When I didn’t, I came up with my idea and then I felt so strongly I thought, ‘I’ll go crazy into debt and make this thing.’ ”

Running out of money is common among inventor wannabes, says Bret Bordner, vice president of the Gahanna-based manufacturing company Laser Reproductions.

“Very few inventors make a profit,” he says. “The biggest obstacle is coming up with the funding. I’ve seen many people run out of money before the idea gets to market – even if it’s a good idea.”

Working with Bordner, however, Hamrick was able to tweak OnTray’s design in just a few iterations and ready the product for production in a few months.

“The first thing people don’t do,” Bordner says, “is due diligence. They need to make sure they’re not infringing on something in the marketplace. Maybe the product is identical to something else but with a totally different application. That’s OK, but few people have an idea that I haven’t seen already.”

Hamrick’s idea, however, was the only of its kind, if not surprisingly simple.

“Why didn’t I think of that,” says Bordner. “It’s like the paperclip. But I have to say she did a very good job of getting it in front of the right people.”

Although Hamrick incurred about $75,000 in debt – using personal savings, credit cards and equity in her home – getting the patent and manufacturing processes started, she’s now profitable and it’s just her second year in business. That success is thanks to online sales and retail sales from 200 baby boutiques throughout 17 U.S. states, Canada, Australia and France.

And 2009 is shaping up to be a milestone year with brisk sales – Hamrick estimates sales of $80,000, double last year’s – and a freshly inked distribution deal with Hamco. The national baby products distributor based in Gonzales, La., will sell OnTray in major retail stores such as Meijer, Babies”R”Us and BuyBuy Baby.

“There’s a middle man,” says Hamrick, which in the end will decrease her profit. “But it’s such a great opportunity to partner with a company who’s done everything, including fulfillment. It just made sense to take a lesser profit margin.”

In addition to the Hamco U.S. deal, Hamrick says partnerships with distributors in Australia, Singapore and the U.K. have helped with her projections.

“I’m so thankful this is happening in my second year of business,” she says. “If it had happened when I launched, I wouldn’t have known the questions to ask or the research to do so. And I might have gotten excited and said, ‘Yeah, pay me whatever.’ Now I know to get references and talk to other companies they’re representing.”

Securing a distribution agreement and then waiting for the money to roll in can be a fatal mistake, says Jason Ricci, president of Columbus-based Titan Logistics distribution company allows you to receive email alerts with stories related to your companies of interest.

“The business of fulfillment and distribution is about preparation and organization,” he says. “While it may look great on paper, there’s always something that happens. It’s important for business owners to be aware of what’s going on with distributors, stay in good communication with their vendors and customers and to keep track of time frames.”

That’s why Hamrick maintains a home office from where she manages distribution, monitors Internet sales and does small-order fulfillment. She’s also planning development of complementary products beginning in early 2010.

OnTray And It's Many Uses!

I love it when people send me pictures of OnTray being used in ways I never even imagined. I'm thrilled that it worked for this one OnTray user on the restaurant's high chair! I'd love to see pictures of how you use OnTray. E-mail them to me at laurahamrick@42kids.com !

High Resolution Photo of OnTray for Print Purposes

High

High Resolution Photo of OnTray for Print Purposes

OnTray...in Australia!

OnTray was recently featured in an article in Australia's Practical Parenting magazine. Think Parents magazine here in the States...B I G! Super excited!

OnTray Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

OnTray Gives Parents Extra Hand, Or Two, When They Shop With Little Ones
Innovative and award-winning snap-on shopping cart tray is available in more than 200 stores in U.S. including Buy Buy Baby and Babies R' Us (8/09)and abroad

Columbus, OH (June 22, 2009) _ Every parent needs an extra set of hands -- especially during shopping trips with little ones. OnTray, an award-winning and ingenious snap-on tray for shopping carts, keeps little ones busy and stocked with snacks or play things while parents do the shopping. OnTray also can be used to hold things such as coupons, keys and cell phones, making it a genius multi-tasker just like today's modern parents.

The idea for OnTray (ontray2go.com) was born on a day when Laura Hamrick spent an exhausting and unsuccessful grocery shopping trip handing out snacks one-by-one to her three small boys, all the while trying to look through coupons and fill the cart. "I did some research on the web and found there wasn't a product available that would free up adult hands to shop and keep little hands busy. OnTray was born out of necessity,'' Hamrick said. "OnTray encourages your child to feed or entertain himself with what you place on the tray, allowing you to shop with minimal distraction and it also can be used in conjunction with popular cart seat covers, which is convenient.''

Three years after that shopping trip, OnTray is sold online and in more than 200 stores in the United States, Canada, Australia and France. This summer the patent-pending product will also be sold at Babies ‘R Us and Buy Buy Baby stores, via OnTray's national distributor, Hamco. OnTray, retailing for $7, easily snaps on to the standard shopping cart handlebar. Available in four bright colors, it is microwave and dishwasher safe and fits easily in a diaper bag or purse. The convenient cover keeps items tucked inside during travel. OnTray is manufactured in the USA of FDA-approved plastic, free of harmful BPAs, and it meets all new requirements of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, so parents know their toddlers and pre-schoolers can use OnTray with confidence.

From its beginning, OnTray has been featured and praised by business experts such as StartupNation and The Big Idea with Donnie Deutsch, national media and parents everywhere: "I don’t know how many times I’ve been trying to move quickly through the shopping aisles while trying to fish crackers out of a crumpled bag for my daughter. With this secure tray, both she and I are happier. This is brilliant!'' wrote a reviewer for Southern New Hampshire Parents. And praise even from celebrities such as Jason Reitman, the director of Juno, and father of Josie: "Fun product! We'll keep it in our car for shopping trips!'' Hamrick, who never intended to become an inventor, says she gets great feedback all the time. "I love when parents tell me OnTray is a sanity saver for them while they are shopping with their young children,'' Hamrick said. "I know it is something I don’t shop without and I hope it’s a staple item in moms’ purses and diaper bags.”

More about Laura Hamrick and OnTray
Laura Hamrick invented OnTray in 2006. She has degree in Early Childhood Development and is a former sales executive. Hamrick lives in the Columbus area with her husband and three sons, where she is founder of the Women’s Networking Group of Central Ohio. OnTray (www.ontray2go.com) has received numerous awards including the New Parents Guide Seal of Approval and was selected as one of The Top 10 Most Innovative 2007 by StartupNation in their Home Based 100 Search. Connect with Hamrick and OnTray through Twitter at @OnTray2Go and Facebook, www. Facebook.com/OnTray

Contact:
Laura Hamrick
e-mail: laurahamrick@42kids.com
phone: 614-313-0530 or 888-208-9240

Carrie Weir
WeirPR
carrie@weirpr.com
615-429-5538

Suggested story ideas

Laura Hamrick, inventor and owner of OnTray, would be an ideal source on a variety of stories, including:

+ How to take an idea and turn it into a patented, successful product. What you need to know and what you need to avoid.

+ Some businesses are expanding in a recession. A business feature offering tips from experts and small businesses on how to win during the down-turn. (Laura Hamrick's OnTray will be in an additional 133 stores this summer.)

+ How to pitch your product to retailers and customers alike with minimal effort and expense by using social media strategies and business-focused message boards.

+ A feature on cool and unusual gadgets and items that make shopping with the kiddos easier. Some examples, Dwink to keep juice boxes from squishing; Sippy Pal, a strap that keeps kids from throwing their cups; the Clean Shopper, to cover the shopping cart seat; and OnTray, to hold snacks and toys.

Virtual Baby Shower!

Yummo!

Ok, click the button and you'll be taken to a site, www.fromdatestodiapers.com, where you can enter to win ice cream for a year from Blue Bunny. Do I need to say more really??? Good luck!

Mom4Life.com

Okay, so who doesn't love finding great, useful items at great prices and FREE shipping? I loved this site even before they started carrying OnTray, so I wanted to share this little gem of a site if you don't already know about it. Heather, who is the owner of the site, does a fantastic job of only carrying Mom Invented or Mom Inspired products and is constantly updating her site with new and improved products. www.Mom4life.com also runs weekly specials, giveaways all of the time and sponsors many contests. Consider yourself warned when I say you will LOVE this site!

$50.00 Crocs Giveaway from Your Mama Reviews!

We love Crocs in our family, so when I came across this $50.00 Crocs giveaway I had to enter to win and I wanted to share it with you! Please visit the link and follow the directions on how to enter. While you're there, check out the other reviews on this great site.

Good Luck!

Great Cause and a Great Giveaway!

Visit the link to check out a great giveaway, awarding one winner a year's supply of Kraft Mac and Cheese. It's all in an effort to bring attention to Kraft's Share a little Comfort campaign where every time you visit www.sharealittlecomfort.com and click on the donate box button, Kraft donates a box of Mac and Cheese to Feeding America. How great is that?!?

Now go and click away. Visit http://tr.im/m92U for your chance to win Mac and Cheese for a year and then go to www.sharealittlecomfort.com to help a hungry person! Come on!

Upscale Baby likes OnTray!

Here's OnTray's latest review. Thanks to Susan and Upscale Baby Blog!

http://upscalebaby.com/blog/feeding/ontray-the-container-2-go-by-42-kids/

OnTray, Boogie Wipes & One Heck of a Baby Shower!

Invention Addict: Invention Spotlight - OnTray

Check this out!

Invention Addict: Invention Spotlight - OnTray

OnTray on www.onegoodie.com

OnTray is available all weekend at http://onegoodie.com/home.php 20% off!! They make TERRIFIC shower gifts!

Go Graham Go OnTray Review & Giveaway!

You have got to visit this site to see the video review Felicia put together for OnTray. Also, she's giving one away! Visit: http://tr.im/haDH to view the video and to register for the giveaway!

OnTray Video

Support us in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition

Support us in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition

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Just For Laughs!

Ok, let me preface by saying that Chad was excellent at changing our boys' diapers. After watching this video, I realized that about him. :)

Sit back & have a good laugh!

OnTray Available at Meijer's!

Don't get me wrong, I love and am quite thankful for my Independent Retailer's across the country, but when I walked into one of the many local grocery stores in my area, Meijer's, and saw OnTray hanging from a clip strip, my heart skipped a bit! I mean, there it was...aisle 7 by the Animal Crackers. I grabbed my camera and you should have seen the look on this mother who was shopping with her children. She probably thought, "Who the heck is this crazy lady with a camera at Meijers?" She was just hanging out and finally I said, "I'm going to take a picture of this product...it's actually my product!!" She looked at it, looked back at me and just walked away. I guess she wasn't impressed. Oh well, I'm thrilled!

THRIFTY & CHIC MOM: OnTray Giveaway

Check out the latest OnTray review and giveaway!

THRIFTY & CHIC MOM: OnTray Giveaway

Are You a Fan of OnTray?

I have a Fan Page on FaceBook for OnTray. Are you on FaceBook? Are you a fan of OnTray? If so, head on over to check out the page and become a fan: http://tr.im/fgjf I've also started a discussion on the page as to what the next color of OnTray should be. If you feel like adding to the discussion, or if you have some pictures of how you use OnTray, feel free to post. I love to hear from you!

Now What Baby: Avoid supermarket disasters

Now What Baby: Avoid supermarket disasters

New OnTray review...and giveaway!

New OnTray Review

Look how cute this little guy is using his OnTray! I love how hard he's trying to smile.

His mommy, Katie, did a review of OnTray on her site, http://www.the-giveaway.com/2009/01/ontray-review.html and she's also giving one away! Check it out and be sure to register.

Support 42 Kids, Makers of OnTray in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition

Support 42 Kids, Makers of OnTray in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition

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Support 42 Kids, Makers of OnTray in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition

Support 42 Kids, Makers of OnTray in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition

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Where are you from?

Ever since I added the widget that shows me where everyone comes from that visits my blog, I am curious to know more. Things like, where are you from? What is it about my blog that you like? Do you have questions for me? Are you a weird stalker? Are you a Mompreneur(TM) like me, and are curious about my journey? I'd love to have some conversation with you. It feels strange to post things about me and my business (sometimes personal life) and not receive any feedback. Anyway, if you feel like it, post a comment to this message. I'll try and respond the best I can, and maybe I'll become a little less curious.

Support 42 Kids, Makers of OnTray in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition

Support 42 Kids, Makers of OnTray in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition

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OnTray Review & Giveaway!

I just thought I would share a review that OnTray received and also tell you that they are offering a giveaway! Visit the site for more information.