By Gum! ...it is possible to beat everyone--even big companies--to market, as this entrepreneur found out.
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When U.S. newspapers mentioned that Singapore would lift its banon chewing gum at the start of 2004, most readers probably let itregister for two seconds before moving on to the funnies.
But Art Baer thought "There has to be a market here."Baer, 26, knew if he was going to move beyond the daydreamingstage, he had to move fast. He had a background on Wall Street, butthis was his first crack at becoming an entrepreneur-and in anforeign land, no less. Investing $20,000 of his own money intoImpress Gum, Baer quit his job, flew to Singapore several times,talked to the right people in the government, lined up amanufacturer, and hired a marketing firm to promote his gum, whichfights tooth decay.
Because Singapore wants residents to chew for medicinal purposesinstead of for fun, Impress Gum is primarily sold in pharmacies, andresidents who want to buy a pack must first sign paperwork at thepharmacies. By the end of the year, Santa Barbara, California-basedImpress Gum will have brought in at least $350,000 in revenue.
If Baer had an edge over established gum manufacturers, it washis inexperience. "There were a lot of requirements on whatingredients the gum had to include, and no [existing] gum wouldhave qualified," explains Baer, who gave his contractmanufacturer an outline of the ingredients his gum would need-andgot Impress Gum into stores six weeks before his biggestcompetitor, Wrigley's. Even now, Impress Gum has about 40percent of Singapore's gum market.
Being thousands of miles away from his brand can make for asticky situation, says Baer, "but I touch base with my salesand marketing firm through e-mail and phone." E-mail iseasiest: "It's a 15-hour time difference from Singapore toCalifornia," he says. "I've had a lot of late-nightphone calls."
