"I was once a philosophy professor at the University of Colorado, and I was frustrated with my headset tangling every time I went to make a call on my phone. So I drove to a nearbyJoann Fabrics store and glued a couple of huge clothing buttons to the back of my tiny little iPhone so I could wrap my headset around them. I got made fun of for how ridiculous it was, but over the course of about a year and many, many prototypes, I miniaturized it, and eventually launched a business out of my garage in the mountains of Boulder in 2014."
"It's been 11 years, and since then, PopSockets has sold nearly 300 million iPhone grips in 75 countries and now sells related products, including phone cases, wallets, mounts, batteries, and chargers."
"What I'm passionate about is making a positive impact in the world - not phone accessories. PopSockets fell into my lap with this invention that turned into a viral phenomenon. I ended up running the company, not because I was good at it or was a well-trained CEO, but because I didn't have the money to hire anybody else. To put it simply, I wasn't the right person to be running the company, and my passions lie in maximizing the positive impact. So I found the right person, stepped down as CEO in 2024, and now spend some of my time elsewhere."
A philosophy professor invented a simple solution for tangled headsets by gluing buttons to his phone and iterated the idea into a miniaturized product. The prototype matured over many versions, leading to a 2014 garage launch in Boulder. Over 11 years the product scaled to nearly 300 million grips sold across 75 countries and expanded into related accessories like cases, wallets, mounts, batteries, and chargers. The founder prioritized creating positive impact over accessory-making, acknowledged lacking CEO fit, and stepped down in 2024 after finding a more suitable leader, while changing his work routine and focus.
Read at Business Insider
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