If you are an inventor with a housewares invention or new product, it’s not too late to purchase a booth in the Inventor’s Corner at the 2009 International Home & Housewares Show. Booth space is filling up quickly!

Also, without further adieu, I’m happy to announce the group of professionals that will be participating in our two “DRTV & Pitch to the Pros” panels during the show.

Exhibitors in the INPEX Inventor’s Corner pavilion will have the opportunity to present their ideas to the following panels of new product professionals for review and feedback.

One panel will consist of experts in the DRTV industry, which includes home shopping and infomercials. The other panel will consist of professionals from companies, mail order catalogs and retail establishments looking for new products.

DRTV Inventors Review panel includes:

Wendi Cooper & Scott Hynd will present a “How to Pitch” session that includes the basics of Direct Response TV Marketing

• Wendi Cooper — Moderator, C Spot Run Productions
• Tom Haire — moderator, Response Magazine
• Karen Hyman — LiveLink TV
• Scott Hynd — Proformance Marketing
• Bernadette Voelker — QVC
• Ron Perstein — InfoWorx
• Tim Harrington — Reliant International
• Gary Sullivan — Allstar Products
• Paul Greenberg — Thane Direct
• Anthony Sullivan — Sullivan Productions

Open Innovation Seminar — Conquering Innovation Fatigue

Presented by Cheryl Perkins & Jeff Lindsey of Innovationedge

Pitch to the Pros — Corporate Panel Review Includes:

• Diego Hoic — Church & Dwight
• Jeanne O Connor — Reckitt Benckiser
• Michael Sweeney — Merchandising Services Group
• Barb Downey — Skymall
• Michael Italiano — Innovationedge
• Cheryl Perkins — Innovationedge
• Bill McCoy — Skymall
• Michael Sweeney — The Merchandise Group

Open Innovation Best PracticesWorkshop

Cheryl Perkins from Innovationedge will talk on best practices in making Open Innovation work for your company.

If you have a housewares invention or new product and are interested in joining us in Chicago in March, complete our information request form or contact an INPEX representative at 888-54-INPEX.

With InventHelp’s INPEX show being postponed, many inventors have asked me about other opportunities that are available to exhibit your invention or new product over the next few months.

I’m happy to report, if you are an inventor with a home or housewares product, I have a prospect that you may be interested in. InventHelp and INPEX have once again teamed up with Response Magazine to sponsor the Inventor’s Corner at the 2009 International Home & Housewares Show, March 22nd – 24th.

This is a unique opportunity for inventors to meet companies in the housewares industry and, as an exhibitor in the pavilion, have the opportunity to present your product to two panels of new product professionals for review and feedback.

I also was just informed that any exhibitor in this year’s Inventor’s Corner will be invited to the House of Blues, Sunday night, March 22nd as a guest of the Electronic Retailing Association at their monthly networking event.

If you have a housewares invention or new product and are interested in joining us in Chicago in March, complete our information request form or contact an INPEX representative at 888-54-INPEX.

See you in Chicago!

Here’s a riddle for everyone: what do INPEX, “Police Academy”, Mac computers and the MTV Video Music Awards have in common? The answer: they’ll all be turning twenty-five in 2009.

Yes, it’s hard to believe but, much like those 1980s staples, the Invention and New Product Exposition (INPEX) will be celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2009! That’s a quarter of a century of bringing inventors and companies together!

Since INPEX’s formative years during the Reagan administration, we’ve added features like the Inventor’s University, to help educate inventors on the business side of inventing; Product Reviews, allowing inventors to pitch their new product ideas to company or expert panels; even boxing matches sponsored by Everlast®!

While a lot has changed in America since the year “The Cosby Show” premiered and the L.A. Raiders won the Super Bowl, our commitment to assisting inventors in spreading the word about their inventions and new products hasn’t changed a bit. We’re working just as hard as we did back in 1984 to make INPEX the best it can be (only difference: we don’t listen to Duran Duran while we work anymore).

We invite all inventors and entrepreneurs to join us in celebrating InventHelp’s 25th annual INPEX Invention Trade Show June 24-26, 2009 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in downtown Pittsburgh. You can request more information about exhibiting at INPEX 2009 or call us at 888-54-INPEX.

Did you exhibit at the INPEX ‘84? If so, grab your latest invention and exhibit again – you’ll be truly amazed at how the show has evolved!

Inventors, there’s a really informative piece in the November Inventors Community newsletter that I’d like to call to your attention.

It’s titled “Ten Tips for Getting Noticed” and it was written by Jill Lublin, an internationally renowned speaker and publicity expert. For our audience of startup inventors and entrepreneurs, the article may be very useful as you attempt to draw attention to a new product idea or launch a small business.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Jill Lublin, she’s been a regular speaker at the INPEX Inventors University for years, and exhibitors always find her seminars really helpful and valuable.

Along with her work as a speaker, Jill is also the author of the books “Networking Magic” and “Guerilla Publicity” (both bestsellers), and she came out with another book called “Get Noticed…Get Referrals” just this past June. On top of that, Jill also hosts a TV program and a nationally syndicated radio show.

Make sure to check out Jill’s article in this month’s Inventor’s Community newsletter! You can also sign up to receive this free newsletter via email, or learn more about Jill Lublin by visiting her Web site.

At InventHelp’s 2007 Invention and New Product Exposition (INPEX), a nine-year-old boy surprised everyone by being named Second Runner-Up for the Grand Prix Award – INPEX’s top prize. That young man, Tharon Trujillo of Sacramento, Calif., not only left INPEX 2007 with a cash prize and a handful of medals, but also a bright future as an inventor ahead of him.

I’m happy to report that Tharon has continued to build on the potential he showed at INPEX. Just last month, he displayed his invention the Lock N Block sliding door gate (the same invention he brought to INPEX) at the ABC Kids Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he took home yet another award. Tharon was named one of the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) Innovation Award Winners.

Tharon’s invention is a gate that gets positioned on a sliding door track and prevents toddlers and pets from breaking through the screen. Tharon came up with the idea for the Lock N Block after his then-7-month-old sister pushed out the sliding-door screen at his family’s home. Not long after, Tharon and his dad went to work constructing the prototype they would ultimately exhibit at InventHelp’s Invention Show.

INPEX congratulates Tharon on his recent accomplishment and wishes him the best of luck in his continuing endeavors! As a trade show director, there’s nothing I love more than hearing about former INPEX exhibitors persisting in moving their new product ideas forward. I enjoy passing along these updates and hope they provide other exhibitors and inventors with a little bit of inspiration and encouragement.