Redefining cool: Lawrence company hatches unique social-shopping site / LJWorld.com

Archive for Monday, December 8, 2008

December 8, 2008

An X-Case Exotic Carry-On in Leopard. It’s one of the products rated by Lawrence-based Coolproducts.com, which is going through its first holiday season of combining online shopping and social networking.

A 1/4 Carat Chocolate Diamond and Chocolate Cultured Freshwater Pearl 14K Pink Gold Ring.

On the street

What’s on your Christmas list this year?

Mostly toys and clothes for my family.

— Julie Gorenc

More responses

When Tony Schmidt started Lawrence-based www.coolproducts.com, he set the bar high.

“Our products are supposed to be ‘wow,’ ‘best of class’ or at least very strong,” Schmidt says. “We’re not interested in adequate or textbook stuff. We want the coolest stuff.

“And then we ask our community to tell us: Is this product extremely cool or just mediocre? Give us a thumbs down, and it’s outta here.”

The site, based at the Lawrence Regional Technology Center, 1617 St. Andrews Drive, is going through its first Christmas season of combining online shopping and social networking. If you’re looking for a holiday gift, here is a sampling of what the site offers.

The Resolute Desk

Price: $12,000

Merchant: The New York First Co.

Description: The desk is a replica of one given in 1879 by Queen Victoria to President Rutherford B. Hayes, and used since then in the Oval Office by all but three presidents. The replica may not be made from the timbers of the former HMS Resolute — a ship whose sailors had sought out the Northwest Passage — but its solid oak is carved and built into a version created by relying on drawings from the original desk’s designer and builder.

Kansas Flexible Chopping Mats

Price: $29.95

Merchant: Cooking.com

Description: “Non-slip safety coating” on the “collegiate tailgate pads” offer mixture of surface protection and imperviousness to liquids and oils. And the Jayhawk itself features the official Trajan font.

X-Case Exotic Carry-On in Leopard

Price: $134.99

Merchant: Luggage.com

Description: The bag, “weighing a mere 5 pounds,” is billed as “the World’s Lightest Carry-On.” Guess a plastic bag from Target doesn’t count.

Solio Solar Charger

Price: $99

Merchant: Real Goods

Description: “Place the Solio in sunlight, spread its wings, and once the internal battery charges you can power or charge your iPod, iPhone, Blackberry, cell phone or digital camera.”

1/4 Carat Chocolate Diamond and Chocolate Cultured Freshwater Pearl 14K Pink Gold Ring

Price: $295

Merchant: Ice.com

Description: “Add a breathtakingly beautiful and regal accent to any outfit with this spectacular pearl ring. Highly sophisticated, these chocolate cultured pearls are crowned with gorgeous brown diamonds and set in 14k pink gold.”

Water-Powered Calculator

Price: $26

Merchant: Gaiam

Description: The combined “LCD clock and calculator” runs on “nothing more than ordinary water” taken from a tap, providing a “futuristic stream of pollution-free electrical current.” The description doesn’t explain what’s so futuristic about an LCD clock and calculator.