INNOVATORS Gold Award - New Orleans City Business

ON THE BRINK
CJ Creations
Key innovation: the “Sit Me Safe” safety seat for children
that covers the average waiting room chair
Biggest client: still waiting for one
Where they’re based: Slidell
Top executive: Steve and Jimmie Kaye Hanberg
2007 sales: Hanberg said it was negligible. He’s only
sold a few of the chair covers
PHOTO BY TRACIE MORRIS SCHAEFER
GO TO ANY DOCTOR’S office, bank, restaurant or
school and you are sure to find them — unassuming, multipurpose
stackable chairs with a flimsy back and little
side protection.
Although they provide a high level of convenience to
the user, the chair poses a problem for parents with young
children, since there is no specific way to adequately and
safely seat a curious and active child.
Faced with this problem himself, Steve Hanberg and
his wife, Jimmie Kaye, put their minds together and came
up with the “Sit Me Safe” chair cover, a cushioned covering
with harness that can secure any child.
“The inspiration for the whole idea came from my
daughter,” Hanberg said. “Whenever we would take her
with us to a place with a waiting room, we would always
find her climbing all over the chair and falling through the
side handles. We knew there had to be something to protect
her, and this cover does it.”
Armed with his idea, Hanberg scoured the Internet to
see if there was a legitimate market for this kind of chair
cover.
“There is a huge market for something like this,”
Hanberg said. “Offices, restaurants, even places of worship
use the chairs regularly because they are so versatile.”
With the help of his wife, a seamstress by trade,
Hanberg designed a prototype chair cover. After applying
for a patent in 2003, the couple finally received confirmation
that their idea was an original one.
“That was the biggest hurdle we have had to jump,” he
said. “The patent process is extremely meticulous, and
our lawyer said earning it was an accomplishment in
itself.”
The chair cover uses two thin layers of quilted fabric
with a layer of padding in between. It also features a
restraint buckle much like a car safety seat.
“The chair creates an environment where they can sit
and be safe,” said Hanberg. “If the child is comfortable,
they are happy. This makes the mom or the dad happy.”
Now that he has a patent, Hanberg said his next step is
to target manufacturers of stackable chairs to see if they
are interested in incorporating the “Sit Me Safe” cover in
their design. Hanberg said the only marketing he and his
wife have done has been through word of mouth.
“All of the guys I work with have seen it and really like
it,” Hanberg said. “I also remember the first time we used
the chair in public someone approached us with amazement
by how unique our idea was. I think this chair could
be the next best thing since the stroller.”•
— Robin Shannon
Steve Hanberg created the Sit Me Safe safety seat cover to prevent children from slipping out of or hurting themselves on waiting room chairs.
New Orleans CityBusiness 51A