PACIFIC, Wash. — Matt Ellison's Gurgle Pot invention is not only selling well, but it's popular in media too.
"It was on Stephen Colbert's desk, and one recently on "The Handmaids Tale", and We've seen them in a show called "The Boys" on Netflix," said Jennifer Ellison, Matt's wife.
The Gurgle Pot is a water pitcher, but it's engineered to make a gurgling sound.
"It's so low tech, people are fascinated to buy something that can make noise without a microchip. It's a functional piece of art and people get a kick out of it," explained Matt.
The idea for the Gurgle Pot came about while Matt and Jen were visiting France for a relative's wedding. They were having dinner with some locals and they all were fascinated with an ornate pitcher that made a gurgling sound. When they couldn't find one for sale in the United States, Matt decided to design his own.
But after designing what would become the model, life demands got in the way and it stayed tucked away in his dad's garage.
Finally, after ten years it was his dad's decision to clean out the garage that reignited Matt's desire to develop his model into the real thing.
It became so popular, he eventually quit his job in sales. And Jen used her background in marketing and wholesale to move the business forward.
"It's mindblowing. We've sold over a million and to see it have a life of its own and step away from it as the creator -- it's very humbling that there's stuff going on that I don't have control over. It's out there making people smile and that's cool," said Matt.
Recently, Matt and Jen launched another sound-making product called the Chirpy Top. It's a wine pour that chirps like a bird when wine is poured and it prevents any liquid from spilling.
"I'm so proud of his persistence. Everybody can have great ideas, but it's the ideas that stick and ideas that people continue to work at every day with failure after failure and still believe it," shared Jen.
Gurgle Pots are sold in kitchen stores or can be found online.
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