What types of products does Mako Invent specialize in?

Mako Invent specializes in a broad range of products, primarily in Consumer Products - Home ware, garden, tools, toys, consumer electronics, games, furniture, etc. With years of experience developing hundreds of products for home inventors and small product firms, our design and research team is well diversified in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, plastics, metals, wireless transmission, PCB chip boards, and textiles. We also have developed a wide array of partners, distributors, and factories across many product categories.

I came across your site on the net, are you a real company?

Of course! We know that it is difficult to determine what’s legitimate online, so we have done some work on this website to showcase some of what we have accomplished. As a quick re-cap, we’ve been around since 1999 (how time flies), have developed hundreds of projects, have won a number of design and invention awards, have products in 71 countries and over 500 retail stores, have hundreds of inventors on our Social Media platforms, and have a creative think-tank office right downtown Toronto on ground level beside the Rogers Centre stadium (come visit!).

I only have a Rough Sketch / Idea. Can Mako Invent help?

Certainly! Most of the projects we work on start from an idea. We have our own engineers, design team, and R&D facility, so we will be able to complete your project starting from any stage of development.

Why do you focus on Home Inventors and Small Business?

Simply put, we love the small-time inventor, and we have good reason... While all of the other development firms were scrambling to take a piece of the big-bucks from the large product corporations, we decided to go against the profit-driven grain and focus on the home-inventor with a small budget. Our philosophy was to streamline and simplify the product development process so that we could offer the same caliber of service for a fraction of the cost, and thus make it affordable for a regular person to get a product to market. At first, the competitors shrugged us off; however, what they didn’t realize is that 1) 40% of products are derived from home inventors, 2) Home inventors put way more thought into their product idea than a corporate employee, as it is something they truly and deeply care about, and 3) Regular people are the ones thinking of the best ideas because they are the ones who are identifying a real solution to a real problem in their own day to day lives... So, what happened when Mako Invent took this route? Within a matter of only months, Mako Invent saw explosive growth. A huge and unforeseen need was out there, and now that need had a realistic option available. By 2008, Mako Invent became the largest invention development firm in Canada catering to small business and home inventors, and we are quickly overtaking the US (it will just be a matter of time).

Do I get a Patent first, or develop first?

As a home inventor, you almost certainly do not want to file a patent prior to product development. If you patented first, then made any changes in the development, you would then have to do a second patent, which might even be nullified due to the first one! Also, it makes strategic sense to file at the end of development so that you have your intellectual property protection stretched out as long as possible. Finally, in the mean-time, prior to filing, you can protect yourself in talking with a company such as ours through signing a Non-Disclosure Agreement, which basically is an agreement between two parties to keep discussions confidential.

Do you help with Patenting a Product?

Yes, we file a Provisional Patent for our clients, and we do it for no charge. We want to ensure that your intellectual property is protected so that you have the best chance of success in the market.

I would like to look into working with you. What is the first step?

Contact us for a free consultation. We are always more than willing to talk through what you are looking to do, and advise you the best and most practical way of doing it. Even if you don’t want to use our services, we’re still happy to help where we can as we love anyone who is helping to bring inventions to the world.

If we want to go to Production, where do you manufacture?

We manufacture in Canada, USA, Taiwan, and in China, and many times a blend of two or more of those countries. We will work out a detailed strategy to determine, based on each product’s unique requirements, which is the best avenue for production. As often as we can, we like to keep manufacturing local - You would be surprised, due to increased efficiencies and modern Western processes, many times local manufacturing is a cost effective option!

What’s with all of this Socially Responsible Business stuff at Mako?

At Mako, we believe in Inventing so deeply, that we do not consider ourselves a business - We consider ourselves a System for Developing and Spreading the Next Generation of Innovations, and doing so in the most efficient and effective way so that home inventors and small business have the best shot at getting to market. Beyond this, we believe that inventing is the most important element in driving Western civilization’s economy and wellbeing in the years to come (we know this is a bold statement, but hear us out!). Think about it: The booming growth of the US was not due to politics, finance, or wars, it was the result of revolutionary and consecutive inventions, one after another, in only a few generations. Electricity, Light Bulbs, Oil Refinement, Automobile, Radio, Television, Computers, Medical Care, the Internet - These were the pillars of our society’s growth, and in order to continue to be a global leader, we need to keep inventing, period. Mako Invent is so committed to fostering innovation that, since 1999, we have re-invested every penny made back into the business in an effort to continually improve and grow our skillsets. When we started, we believed that by focusing on greater goals and not on the bottom line, that far greater success would result. Now that we have seen that motto lead to a very successful organization, we push it through every aspect of the company.

How do I spot a Licensing Company or Invention Submission Scam?

Unfortunately, there are groups out there that try to rip off inventors, and we can give you the 3 simple steps to ensure that you don’t become one of them:

1. Right off the bat, be wary of any organization that uses ‘royalties’ or ‘licensing’ as a sales buzzword.

2. If they are offering royalty agreements, licensing deals, or something like this, ask what their success rate is. They will likely either try and deflect the question, or they will have already been sued and thus legally have to disclose the rate. If it is less than 10%, turn right around (and 10% even seems low!).

3. If they pass the first two, ask them what specific industrial design software they use. Most of the bogus companies use low-end computer game software to make fake designs of what the product might look like, not the actual engineering of it. If they are not using Solidworks, AutoCAD, Rhino, or ProE (the 4 industry standards for product engineering), then back away.