Project Manager's Toolbox
The Mobile Manager™ was a revolutionary new product unlike anything
else on the market. Eldon was a leader in portable files, small plastic
file totes designed to hold hanging and manila folders, but did not have
any soft-sided or more traditional briefcases. Portable files were excellent
in holding hanging folders, but regular briefcases failed miserably in
this area.
Seeing an unmet need, Eldon created a cordura fabric carrying shell,
with some of the useful features of soft-sided briefcases... outer accessory
pockets, pen loops, business card holder, key hook, etc., in which a
slightly modified portable file could be placed. Born was a unique hybrid...
a soft-sided, hard case cable of neatly holding letter-sized hanging
folders, and other often needed supplies. Finally, the ideal product
for those who frequently carried files around and perhaps a cell phone,
PDA, or even a laptop.
This new product created an entirely new niche, serving an unmet need,
while carefully not cannibalizing sales of Eldon's existing portable
file business nor creating new competitors by attacking the business
of briefcase manufacturers.
Project type work has invaded most everyone's lives. As it seems most
projects can no longer be confined to a single folder, they present unique
needs of their own. How to keep all the folders of a project together
and all the none project specific items that you always need... pens,
pencils, highlighter, adhesive notes, calculator, etc, together? Enter
the Mobile Manager™ Project Manager™.
Selling the inner hard case component of the Mobile Manager™ with
a card and adhesive sleeve for labeling as a standalone product introduced
a solution for project based work. Each project could be placed in a
case and the required case could be dropped into the fabric shell of
a Mobile Manager™ as needed and all the materials for a particular
project would be at hand.
And what's better than introducing a new product, driving more demand
through an existing product, and expanding product family breadth of
line... doing all that with $0 tooling expense.
EZ Carry™ SimpliFILE® Offers Opening Price Point
While the Mobile Manager™ began to grow in popularity, it was a considerable
increase in price for typical portable files and may have had more bells
and whistles than some users needed.
To protect the Mobile Manager™ as it gained a stronger position
and to help seed this new concept of products, The EZ Carry™ SimpliFILE® was
introduced. The EZ Carry™ served as a smaller step up from the standard
portable file by introducing easier, hands-free carrying, perhaps for
carrying files around the office to meetings or for the occasional
to and from work. All done with negligible tooling expense.
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Original Mobile Manager™  Seen
here with the accessory compartment opened and hanging files inside.
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Project Manager™  Add
on cases with labeling sleeves provides a unique tool for on-the-go
project or account management. |
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EZ Carry™ SimpliFILE®  Without
the bells and whistles of the Mobile Manager™, a simple solution to
hands free hanging-file transport. |
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