29A: Venture Concept No. 2

The Non-Mask

1. Opportunity 

My  target group of people who have an unmet need is rather large, and that need involves modern health and safety measures to guard against the recent COVID-19 outbreak. I would say that nearly everyone has this need right now, but I’m tuning in more on individuals in the United States who are at a higher risk and are seeking a preventative solution without feeling over-the-top or conspicuous. 

One major force prompted our whole world to be brutally impacted--and that’s the coronavirus. It seems as though we’re living in a time when everyone is in danger and susceptible to contracting this fatal virus, and vaccines, testing and cures seem too far away. Therefore, the opportunity of forming a way to better prevent contraction is huge. This “window of opportunity” will be open until a vaccine is widely available, but I also feel as though it’ll be open for a much longer time due to health experts stating that the coronavirus will never be fully eradicated but rather will come back seasonally--much like the flu.

Innovation

My product is a flesh-colored face mask designed to meld into everyone’s face color. It isn’t just a single nude-toned mask that’s expected to be a universal fit, but it’ll come in a wide range of tones. I’d like to design it to have the protective capacity of an N95 mask, which is the most sought-after mask, instead of having protection levels of cloth or surgical masks which only block out a fraction of the respiratory droplets carrying COVID-19. 

Since traditional N95 respirators retail for around $5-$6 each and $25-$30 for a box of 10, I would sell my masks for $4.99 a piece and $24.99 for a pack of 10. 

Venture Concept

It’s no secret that the use of masks has been a heated debate in our society recently, and there are people who strongly advocate for wearing masks in public while there are others who claim that it’s unnecessary or physically disruptive. I’d like to target the essential workers and offer a mask that makes it look like barely anything is being worn while offering safety for those wearing it and the people they come into contact with. Since these are the people who are most exposed the virus and therefore need the most protection, my main efforts will go to serving them first.

I don’t believe it will be easy to get people to switch to using my masks, but one prominent reason I can give to them is the unique characteristic of ambiguity. Packaging won’t be as much of a preeminent role because I suspect most to be sold online, but price points and distribution will play an incredibly important role in attracting customers.

My venture’s “secret sauce” is my background in communications and my work experience in social media management, where I scout out tools to promote and share a given product. Assuming I launched, I would want this venture to start a chain reaction in the wide use of masks in our country. This first venture helps me attain my vision of having my own business by acting as the starting point and initial product launch.

2. Based on my Venture Concept No. 1, the majority of feedback I received pertained to my secret sauce and how it was a good choice to add that in my venture concept. I did get a comment questioning my use of images so I decided to switch things up this time around. Another peer also talked about how masks are such a heated debate right now, and since some people believe it’s a breach of freedom, getting everyone to wear them will be a difficult task but my concept of ambiguity will help. 

3. To adapt my venture concept based on the constructive criticism I received, I looked for new images that would get my message across more effectively. Since feedback on changing my concept was fairly low, I looked back at my “What’s Next?” exercise and was reminded of one peer telling me that my targeting was off because targeting individuals who work from home would be a tough market because they don’t interact with many people anyways. Keeping this in mind, I focused my second venture concept on targeting essential workers who are more exposed to the virus.