Parents know that children always get hungry at the most inconvenient times and places, and pack snacks to take with them. This often involves carrying bibs, jars of food, juice boxes or bottles of formula and bags of crackers or other favorite foods. Most parents are looking for any practical and effective way to make eating on the go easier for themselves and their children.
Lisa Marie D’Amato was no exception. An actress (Cowboys and Indians, The Dahl Dynasty) and a winner on America’s Next Top Model, Lisa married Adam Friedman in 2012 and gave birth to their first son, Daxel, in September of 2013.
When Daxel was about two years old, Lisa and her good friend, Emily Doherty, were on a trip to the mall. Right on cue, Daxel started whining because he was hungry. Lisa took out what looked like a silicone bib with a large “pocket” and put food in the pocket so her son could feed himself. When Emily remarked that this seemed like a great idea, Lisa said it would be better if there were small compartments in the bib so she could put different types of food in them. Emily & Lisa figured that someone must have come up with this idea already.
But after doing a fair amount of internet research, they discovered there wasn’t anything so they decided to make it themselves. Their idea was solid, but they soon experienced the bumpy road that most entrepreneurs have to travel while creating a product and getting it to market. In addition to needing to talk with a patent attorney, figure out fees and jurisdictional issues, create prototypes and cad models, at that time, Lisa was pregnant with their second child and was experiencing some difficulties. Emily had been staying with them in LA, but needed to return home to Canada. So their project faltered for a while.
Then Lisa’s sister-in-law, Eve, came to visit and they were watching Shark Tank! Sometime previously Eve had been trying to develop a product and had considered trying to get on Shark Tank, but had not been able to follow through on her dream. Lisa began to describe the idea that she and Emily had come up with that day at the mall and regained her enthusiasm and determination to make her dream a reality. Over the next several years Lisa, Eve and Emily worked together through email and despite the fact that the road was still bumpy they managed to produce a quality prototype.
On October 24, 2017 a Kickstarter campaign was initiated with a goal of $35,000. The goal was exceeded by several thousand dollars and gained 161 backers. On January 20, 2018, USA Weekly ran an interview with Lisa in which she recalled the difficulties of creating the business, but also the great satisfaction of making her dream come true. On May 30, 2018, Kate Schweitzer of Popsugar.com included Dare-U-Go in a list of “New Baby and Kid Products You’ll Wish Were Invented Sooner.”
The Dare-U-Go is a one piece bib with an attached, three-section food container. The bib is made of 100% waterproof, food-grade silicone, free of BPA and PVC. It easily wipes clean and can be washed on the top rack of a dishwasher. Each bib comes with a spork that fits into a holder in the back of the food container. It is available through Amazon, at Walmart and Kmart, and at several boutique stores both in the US and Canada, as well as in Poland, South Korea, Germany and the UK.
For any entrepreneur out there who is struggling to make their dream come true, Lisa has three pieces of business wisdom she considers most important. When it seems overwhelming, take it in small strides. Ask for help. And don’t ever lose focus on what you want to accomplish.
