Allied Forces

Become a household name in 30 seconds flat.

Technically speaking, entrepreneurs Robert Lange and Chuck Davey didn't get 15 minutes of fame--it was more like 30 seconds. That was the length of time accorded the duo's commercial spot during this year's Super Bowl.

"There were hoots, hollers, screams--everything," recalls Lange, 34, of watching the TV spot with family and friends. "But it just went by so fast."

Echoes partner Davey, 36, "It didn't seem real."

Welcome to the wonderful world of fame--entrepreneur style. As the winners of Mail Boxes Etc.'s nationwide contest to promote a small business during the Super Bowl telecast, Davey and Lange were rushed into the white-hot glare of instant celebrity. Their San Diego-based Pocket Products LLC scored the kind of exposure most small-business owners only dream of. "It was crazy," says Davey of the month following the commercial's airing.

Now, we know what you're probably thinking, and we agree: The likelihood of following in Davey's and Lange's footsteps isn't all that great. Fame is nothing if not arbitrary. Just as the Pocket Products partners couldn't predict they'd be singled out, other businesses--like the Seal Beach, California, restaurant The Abbey, made famous by home run hitter Mark McGwire--have also been thrust into the spotlight. Surprised or not, try to keep your cool. "We want to have a concise plan [for expansion]," says Davey, whose Pocket Pump--a portable device that inflates sports balls--increased its distribution to more than 5,000 retail outlets this year. Now that's a winning attitude.

This article was originally published in the November 1998 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: Allied Forces.