Business Model
The focus product of this business model is the Magic Cup – a leak-proof, BPA-free bottle equipped with a carefully designed filter system that fixes the issue of stale water, lumpy fruit juices or protein shakes. There is no other product on the market like the Magic Cup; all shakers mix the ingredients irregularly and with clumps while the filtration system installed into the Magic Cup ensures clump-free and fresh shakes.
The key partners of the Magic Cup, Inc. include primary manufacturers, suppliers, fitness clubs, local grocery shops like Whole Foods and supermarket chains like Walmart. Also, by cooperation with app developers, the Magic Cup team can create a smartphone app that reminds its users to drink water and protein shakes, provides them with new recipes and useful information about the benefits of protein shakes.
Key activities are linked to the design of the Magic Cup, manufacturing, strict control of the product quality, the development of the above-mentioned software for applications, and, consequently, sales. Key resources used by the Magic Cup management include physical, intellectual, and human. In terms of the sales channels, the Magic Cup can be sold through several shops and facilities like fitness clubs, sports gear shops, grocery stores, online retailers like Amazon.com, and others.
Even though the Magic Cup is intended to be used by athletes and anyone with an active lifestyle, it can be used for promoting the importance of hydration in all segments of the market. The basic value propositions of the Magic Cup are linked to its affordable price and the convenience of its features. Lastly, the cost structure should be value-driven and fixed so that all clients pay the same amount for the product across all sale channels.
Intellectual Property Protection
Since every innovative idea needs a thorough plan of success, the intellectual property (IP) portfolio is an integral part of any business plan, including the Magic Cup business plan. Thus, it is crucial to invest in a diverse intellection property portfolio and patent what is important not only to the company itself but what can be of interest to others. Of primary importance is patenting the unique filtering system, a feature that sets the Magic Cup apart from its competitors.
Furthermore, it is important to cooperate with a skilled attorney that specializes in the protection of the intellectual property so that all aspects of patenting and copyrighting are dealt with accordance with the U.S. law. To save cost at early stages of IP protection, the Magic Cup management can work with lawyers from different geographical areas because a Harvard Graduate from Wisconsin has a similar set of skills to a Harvard Graduate based in New York; however, the saved costs can add up to more than fifty percent.
Apart from patenting the Magic Cup’s filtering system and trademarking the name of the product itself, the company’s management can look into the protection of the trade secrets that relate to the design of the cup itself. While the trade secret cannot be registered under the law, a company has a complete right of taking all necessary actions to manage the disclosure of corporate secrets and other valuable information. Magic Cup, Inc. can restrict access to information and sign non-disclosure agreements with employees that decide to resign from their positions.