Ideas are different than products. Ideas can become products. But more often they don't. Ideas are created a lot more than functional, salable, beautiful products. When one becomes the other, well..that's pretty cool, and that is what drives us to make products that people love.
We started bambu, because we wanted to turn ideas into products that people would like, could trust, and want to use. Products created with imagination and integrity from renewable resources. And made by adhering to responsible business practices.
We have had a lot of 'firsts' creating several new, innovative, market-changing products, including:
- USDA certified organic cooking utensils
- Hybrid cutting boards made from cork and bamboo
- Veneerware range of compostable bamboo plates
- Cork fabric collection
- The first hemp denim range
- Kids eating utensils made from certified organic bamboo
And another popular product in our line - the Give It A Rest collection of bamboo utensils. Here's how we came up with this key product collection.
First there was the idea. Then there was the name.
We wanted to find a way to use the unique characteristic of bamboo. All bamboo grows with what is called a 'node'. It's not unlike a knot in a tree, except that it is more regular, more consistent, and a beautiful aspect to bamboo. If you look carefully at a bamboo cutting board, or a utensil, or even one of our plates, you will see a very noticeable grain that is different from the rest of the grain.
This is the 'node.'
We wanted to use the node in a way that contributed to the design of a product. We wanted to use the 'design of nature' and turn it into a product feature. We came to the idea of the 'node as a spoon rest.' The node would elevate the utensil head off the countertop. Let's do away with silly spoon rests (yes, we were making those too, at the time), and integrate the functionality right into the product.
The idea was good. We put it into development, made some improvements along the way, and confirmed we could make it. It was simple and elegant. It offered a great feature. Now we needed a name.
We had several internal brainstorming meetings. Nothing was working, no names felt quite right. We weren't coming up with anything that lived up to the functionality of the product, and that was distinct and memorable.
We were up against a deadline too. Often, the pressure of time inspires creativity. It was late, wine was involved, and we were getting agitated. A same old name was offered up. And the response from one of our team members was, "ENOUGH. WILL YOU JUST GIVE IT A REST!!
Ureka! We knew it instantly. That was it. It was perfect. That was the name we were going to put onto the packaging the next day. We remember that evening fondly. It's cool how things work out. When an idea becomes a product.
If you haven't checked out our 'Give It A Rest' cooking tools, give them a try. They are made from certified organic bamboo. The only bamboo utensils that displays the USDA Certified Organic logo. Available on our bambuShop and at most Whole Foods markets.
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