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Armed and Ready

What mother hasn’t wished for an extra set of hands, especially during those tough infant and toddler years? Margo Smith, mother of five and grandmother of eleven (blending families with her husband, she has a total of twenty-six grandchildren) knows this wish all too well.

When you’re a mom in the trenches, being armed with a third arm could give you that extra hand to win the baby battle. And this grandmother wanted to help mothers everywhere.

Margo wanted to make something that would hold baby bottles, sippy cups, and toys, and would attach to car seats, strollers, tables, high chairs, and shopping carts. She went to stores and confirmed that nothing like this was in the marketplace. Next, she did the patent search, then the prototype construction, and finally did focus group testing to get the public’s opinion. The focus groups loved her invention. Margo was ready to move forward.

Sometimes in product development, an invention takes on a life of its own. The inventor recognizes one user group for the product, but the public sees another user group. That’s what happened with Mother’s Third Arm. This baby product found its way into the arms of wheelchair users and their caretakers, who have embraced Mother’s Third Arm and the independence it provides. If wheelchair-bound children can move their heads to where the cup is held, they can sip from a straw. Margo says, “A product is either a need or a want. For mothers who have a child in a wheelchair, Mother’s Third Arm is a need.” And they’re grateful to have this need met.

Margo thought of the idea in 1996, got her patent two years later, and then had 10,000 manufactured in Phoenix. She brought her costs down by getting 20,000 made in China. Out of those 30,000, she only has 1,500 left. Mother’s Third Arm is not sold nationally, but an earlier model was—through Toys “R” Us, Baby Depot, and other outlets. That one-size version broke when people tried to put different size cups in it. So Margo took it off the market and improved it to hold various sized bottles and cups. She has been selling it through catalogs, the Internet, and her office in Phoenix, as well as giving away thousands to children’s

disability charities.

Margo hopes that, before long, her invention will be in all the stores and on the Home Shopping Network. She is working with a big company that has plans to take Mother’s Third Arm all over the U.S., Canada, and Europe. “I’ve been looking for these people for a long time. Instead, they found me through a website.” If the deal goes through, Margo will no longer be responsible for manufacturing Third Arm. Instead, the big company will make the product and the patent will remain in Margo’s name. Margo says that, if it happens, she’ll rest easy in the arms of this deal.

Last fall, Margo entered Mother’s Third Arm in Proctor & Gamble’s achievement contest, and out of 400 products, it came in third. Do you see the irony here? Mother’s Third Arm came in third. And it turns out, the contest brought in more than just kudos. “Target is very interested, as is Canadian Tire.”

To get Mother’s Third Arm this far, it has cost Margo an arm and a leg. She’s spent about $300,000 over nine years and is now more than eager to get out of the red. “Sales are great. I’m holding my own. But I’m still putting my own money into it.” She lost a bundle through scams. “I was scammed by three companies. As soon as I got my patent, a company said that for only $5,000 it would help me get my product out. Companies like these don’t do anything for you but take your money. And it’s too small an amount to sue over.”

Through it all, she’s had the unfailing support of her husband, family, and friends. “The first few years, everybody was happy for me. Now when I see friends, I wonder if they’re afraid to ask, thinking, ‘Oh dear, is it still going?’ No one ever told me I was crazy. People might have thought it, but they haven’t said a word.”

Whether Mother’s Third Arm makes it or not, when you see the effort Margo has put into her invention, you just have to stop and give her a big hand.