Press release -

Educational Invention Documentary Series, Make48, To Air Across America

Ever wonder what happens to the products after ‘Shark Tank’? Most invention competitions or television series only show the concept being presented to judges and nothing more. Based on an unscripted 48-hour invention competition, the successful Make48 event is being turned into a highly educational documentary style TV series which showcases the real-life process from napkin to consumer. The show will air in the beginning of September.

The first season launch of the Make48 series with APT (American Public Television), KTWU (Kansas PBS Station), and Outpost Worldwide will be seen on over 200 public television stations, covering over 70% of the United States. With a very high potential reach, KTWU is “honored to be the Presenting Station partner in the successful distribution efforts of Make48 to public television stations, nationwide, through American Public Television. We are proud to offer this new and innovative invention competition to public television stations and believe it will spark the inventive and creative spirit in audiences of all ages, genders, and backgrounds across the nation.”

The Make48 team says they were humbled by such good results which have taken their team two years to materialize. Make48 CEO Tom Gray says, “many people with an idea have minimal knowledge of what it really takes to get innovation from idea to retail shelves and we are excited to show such a process. The viewers watching are naturally purchasers of consumer products on a regular basis and may have a new appreciation of how the product got into their hands.”

Top industry brands like Stanley Black & Decker, QVC, Amazon Launchpad, Ace Hardware, Indiegogo, Pivot International, Handy Camel, Squatty Potty, and Wet & Forget are all supporting this leading educational competition. Make48 also brings in leading experts in design, manufacturing, and crowdfunding for the documentary series to educate the public in their specific field. Having supportive brands behind the concept is a testament to the movement of Make48.


“It is a mini-course in development, production, and marketing of a new idea or product...If I had attended something like Make48 in the beginning process of Squatty Potty, I really feel we could have prevented some of the pitfalls that we fell into.”
- Squatty Potty Founder, Judy Edwards

Topics

  • Education

Make48 is the brainchild of a group of Kansas City-based inventors who have been developing and launching products for decades. Their passion for inventing and problem-solving led them to the creation of Make48. With a competition theme revealed at the start of 48 hours, teams develop a new commercial product idea and pitch it to a panel of industry experts. The 3 winning products are then commercialized to show the full process on a TV series. The show is unscripted and the series consists of everyday people, experts, and entrepreneurs. The next competition will be at the Kansas City Art Institute on September 28-30, 2017 and casting is open until July 1st, 2017.

Contacts

Courtney Benisch

Press contact Director of Events