A new flea market item is combining features that are hot and trendy, especially as summer ends and school starts. The Memory on Hand band, a silicone bracelet clasped together by a USB flash drive, makes a stylish statement and keeps those all-too-easy-to-lose USB flash thumb drives handy.
Andrew Kitzenberg, a recent grad and the brains behind the product, developed it at college. “I started it during my senior year as a course project,” he says. The trendy accessory, keeping files accessible at all times, is a big hit among high school and college kids, and at a wholesale price of $7.50 and $9.50, for 2 GB and 4 GB respectively, the band is a good value purchase for swap meet and flea market shoppers.
The Memory on Hand bracelet combines convenience with great utility. “Almost everyone uses a flash drive these days,” says Kitzenberg. “Almost everyone has computer files, whether it is music, videos, pictures. When people see an item like this, an item they know and need, in a new and convenient form, it makes a great impulse buy. There’s an ‘aha’ moment, and shoppers get excited about it. At a flea market, it impresses lots of consumers.”
He points out that a vendor demonstrating the product offers selling prowess that a store cannot match. “That was one of our big obstacles, getting consumers to understand what the product it is,” he says. “Having someone who can say exactly what it is, and pop it open and showing them the flash drive, that goes a long way. It makes selling the band very easy.”
The minimum purchase is two dozen, costing $180 for the 2 GB model, or $220 for the 4 GB model. The suggested retail price is $19.95 for the 2 GB, and $24.95 for the 4 GB. “We do see a lot of retailers go below that. Many keystone it at $14.95 and $19.95.” The minimum display comes with a T-bar display that holds about 20 bracelets.
The bands are available in 20 different solid and multi-colors. “Our most popular to date is the rainforest and milky way colors. We test new colors by posting them on Facebook and receiving feedback from our fans.” The band is available in only one size at this time, 188 millimeters, a standard medium/large size the fits 90 percent of the population. And while it may seem silly to point out, Kitzenberg emphasizes, “The Memory On Hand band is not waterproof. I’ve gotten numerous calls on the matter. Perhaps in the future. For now, you can wash your hands safely, but the MoH band should never be submerged into water.”
Kitzenberg also has vowed to give back to charity, offering 10 percent of Memory On Hand band profits to an organization in line with the majority of his customers. This year, Kitzenberg is hoping to make this donation to Scholarship America.
For more information:
Memory On Hand
220 Concord Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02138
Tel.: 877-234-4493
Fax: 877-234-4493
E-mail: customerservice@memoryonhand.com
Web site: memoryonhand.com