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Discovered! 505
Odd Enterprises

Hidden Dollars

How to Make
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Small Business
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You Can Own
a Business

What Mrs. Jones did not know twelve years ago when she visited the home of a neighbor, Mrs. Tom Brookshire, was that she would get the germ of an idea which would start her in business.

In the middle of her visit, Mr. Brookshire arrived fussing and fuming. "Those blankety-blank dog boots," he complained. "Why don't they make some that last for at least an hour? What do I pay them good money for? Before the dogs had even gotten started good, the blasted things wore out. The dog's feet were bleeding from prickly pears and sharp rocks."

His wife tried to calm him by asking, "And what did you do for the dog?"

"I cut the pockets out of my pants, wrapped up the dog's feet and came home," Brookshire said, showing the ragged edge of what used to be a pocket. "Mrs. Jones, you are always figuring out ways to do things and make money, why don't you make me some dog boots? You could make a mint of money at it."

Not that Mrs. Jones believed the mint part, but the idea kept turning over in her mind as she tried to sleep that night. She could always use the money, and it was a challenge!

THE NEXT day she visited her husband's cotton sack factory and picked up some small triangular scraps of duck. Home she went and started working on a pattern. As Mrs. Jones describes the process: "I worked right up and down the dog's leg trying to find out how high the boots should be. The whole process was nothing more than trial and error. I made several pairs long enough to reach the first joint of the dog's leg and gave them to various hunters to test as well as to my neighbor. They found this one too long, cumbersome, and hard to fasten on the dog.

"The other extreme, cut real short, was too easy for the dog to kick off. I kept right on working up and down the dog's leg and having the hunters test the boots. The best length turned out to be four inches high.

"The toe and the heel seemed to take the hardest wear; so I decided that if these two parts were re-enforced, they would wear longer. Imagine my chagrin when the area in between wore out! That gave me the idea to double the bottom, eventually add the third waterproof layer, and then quilt the three soles.

"When the soles worked out so well, I added a waterproof cap, joining at the sole and extending about two inches up on the top. This cap is cut in two identical parts to fit perfectly over the top. The cap makes it possible to do away with any raw seams, as these can all be turned in and the cap stitched on top. The boot is seamed in the back and in the front as far as the cap covers. The top is left open in the front from there on up to make it easier to slip on. This part of the boot is tar taped to the dog's leg to hold it on. Soft eight-ounce duck is used on the tops and two soles. The waterproof is used on the outside sole and on the outside cap."

MRS. JONES continued to work with her neighbor's dog and with the dogs of other hunters until she figured out the best length and the pattern style which suited the most hunters—and the largest number of dogs. Even after she was fairly certain of the pattern, she continued to have hunters use the dog boots and report any defects which they found. When she felt sure she had the best possible pattern, she applied for a patent, which was granted in August of 1948.

Mrs. Jones follows a rather definite routine in making the boots. First, she cuts out the shoes and stitches the tops. Next she makes the cap and attaches it to the top. The third step is to put the three soles together and quilt them. Then the sole is joined to the top and cap, and turned. For the entire process her simple equipment consists of an electric sewing machine, a cardboard pattern, and a drum stick for turning and shaping the shoe. She works on only one size at a time and completes the entire shoe.

The boots are made in five sizes: small, medium, large, very large and a small size for training young puppies. She sells very few of the last two sizes. She manages to keep about ten dozen pairs on hand at all times. A set consists of four boots and sells for $1.50. She makes six shoes an hour, including the cutting. So, beginning twelve years ago with a cloth tube and sole, Mrs. Jones has tested and built a highly satisfactory dog boot which is fast winning recognition all over the United States.

MRS. JONES'S principal advertising has been by word of mouth. One hunter buys a pair, and he tells another about them. Or one hunter sends a set to a friend of his in the Dakotas. A group of hunters may get together and send for a whole batch of them. This gradual increase in business encouraged her to get printed order cards which she sends to her customers before the opening of the hunting season.

Because of the varying hunting seasons, her business begins in September and continues well into February. Then there are occasional orders through the summer. She recently has been busy filling a large order which came in from North Dakota.

Mrs. Jones has been waiting to advertise in sports magazines until she secured her patent and really had something to advertise. Last spring she had a real break when the King Ranch brought the National Field Trials to Kingsville, Texas. She made posters with dogs pictured wearing her boots and then placed them on the grounds and in the lobby of the hotel. Already this little bit of homespun advertising is beginning to pay off.

Sometimes, during the busy season, when the orders begin to pile in, she gets a little behind. When her children, two sons and two daughters, get in from their work, they pitch right in and help her catch up on the orders. One cuts, one sorts, one turns—the house is one assembly line.

Other than testing the boot, the only difficulty Mrs. Jones has experienced was during the war when there was a shortage of materials and her husband had sold his business. She solved this situation by ripping up cotton picker's sacks and eventually ended by buying waterproof pup tents.