Student turns idea into merchandise
>>Print ViewPublication Date: 09/29/2008
Andrew Fischer | Staff Photographer
Ben Stover, a junior in the College of Technology, shows off his Rah-Bra. The Rah-Bra is a product that Ben and his family developed.
sponsored by
What started out as a joke ended up as a marketable product.
Ben Stover, a junior in the College of Technology, developed the Rah Bra, a Hawaiian-style bra which is customized to display school colors and can be worn outside or without a shirt.
"It can be worn by both men and women to bring out the fun in tailgating," he said. "There is no logo, just colors. They can be used across different sports levels."
Stover came up with the idea while on vacation; he saw someone wearing a Hawaiian-style bra at the beach and thought about taking that concept and adding a team's color to the mix.
"I was goofing around and said 'Hey, what if you put team colors on them?'" he said. "A couple months later we had a thousand of them in our basement."
The manufacturing process took about a year and Stover faced many days when he thought the product wouldn't lift off.
"The times I didn't think it would happen were up until it did," he said.
The product became a family friend owned business and was christened by Stover's grandma after an evening of brainstorming.
"We were just sitting and joking at the idea, and it popped into her head," he said.
Since then, Stover has appeared on CNBC's "The Big Idea" and several other news channels, talking about his product and his experiences. Stover said he uses this publicity to share his experiences as well as market the product.
"Considering it's expensive," he said about advertising. "Free publicity, we're very lucky to get that."
Stover said word of mouth and catching people in the moment by wearing their product are other ways they market the Rah Bra.
Stover and his family, who helped him develop the bra, sell the product online but would like to expand. Beth Carroll, term lecturer at Purdue University, advised Stover on marketing his product.
"He originally wanted to sell at football games at campus and around the stadium," she said. "I suggested he contact a couple of the bookstores."
Registering for a street vendor's license and getting bookstores involved are at the top of Stover's to do list. The young entrepreneur said he continues to learn new things from this experience as it progresses.
"It showed me how easy it can be to get into a new market," he said.
Carroll said what sets Stover apart from other students was his ambition and effort with this product.
"A lot of people have ideas and don't act on them; he acted," she said. "He'll learn from this experience."
For more information about the Rah Bra and where it can be purchased go to www.rahbra.com.