For those familiar with the television direct response mega-hit Smart Spin, Warren Tuttle was the person behind the scenes helping to orchestrate its overnight success. Teaming with a Boston based inventor, Tuttle selected an explosive path to market. With almost 10 million units sold so far, SmartSpin continues to be prominently featured at major retailers throughout America. Warren also teamed to initiate the market launch of several other innovative kitchen products including MISTO, The Gourmet Olive Oil Sprayer, which has sold over 5 million units around the world to date, and The Toss and Turn Pan, one of the best selling cookware frypans in the US in 2005. Warren has also helped numerous housewares product patent holders obtain licensing agreements with major U.S. manufacturers and has counseled many inventors who went on to start their own small businesses.
Warren currently serves as the President of the United Inventors Association, the nation’s largest 501c3 non-profit dedicated to inventor education and advocacy.
Warren focuses on external product development for Lifetime Brands of Garden City, New York, the world’s largest manufacturer of kitchen utensils and a major supplier of food prep and tabletop products to America’s major retailers. Lifetime Brands manufactures and markets over 30,000 products under multiple brand names including Farberware, Kitchen Aid, Cuisinart, Pedrini, Mikasa, Towle and Pfaltzgraff; introducing over 4,000 new products each year. There is great enthusiasm for looking outside the company for innovation, particularly patented new products. Warren has initiated almost 100 new product licensing agreements with Lifetime Brands.
Additionally, Warren helps with the Open Innovation program at Techtronic Industries NA of Anderson,South Carolina, manufacturers of Ridgid and Ryobi power tools and Hart hand tools. As an outside contractor, he screens and serves as a liaison for innovative external product submissions for the mutual benefit of both the companies and inventors. He also works closely with Direct Response Television stalwart Merchant Media of Marlborough, MA who has launched many successful TV products over the past 20 years.
Prior to developing and marketing products for the housewares industry, Warren owned 5 of his own gourmet specialty kitchenware stores (The Complete Kitchen of Southern CT), a prepared food and catering business (The Good Food Store of Darien, CT), a nationally recognized cooking school and a partnership in a kitchen design business. Food and Wine magazine once described The Complete Kitchen as “one of the finest gourmet stores in America”. Warren began his career as a department store buyer of cookware and small appliances in New York City (Abraham and Straus of Brooklyn, NY).
Arranged by Bob Howe
Video of his presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvVDuyB_sQI