Life Change: Getting Rich Making Rubber Duckies

Craig Wolfe  had already owned one successful company. For his encore, he wanted to create the product he would sell.
By: The Aging Diva
November 22, 2011

CelebriDuck’s fanciful creatures are big sellers.Source: Courtesy of CelebriDucks

Craig Wolfe is proud to be bringing production of his rubber ducks back to the States, where the first rubber duck was made.

He already had a successful business selling animation art to collectors, but at age 45, Craig Wolfe was bored. “Okay, I was the largest marketer of animation artwork of the Budweiser frogs and the Coke bears. But I didn’t create them, I just sold and re-edited their artwork. I wanted my own creation.”

The time was right. Wolfe could see that the market for animation had peaked. He had a fanciful idea for his next act: rubber ducks, but with a twist. His version of the classic bath toy would bear the likeness of cartoon characters, politicians, celebrities and historical figures.

His venture didn’t start off with a bang. “I called King Features, which owns the rights to Betty Boop. The woman there thought I was crazy. It was one of those phone calls we’ve all had where they’re trying to get rid of you. She said, ‘Make one and then we’ll talk,’” Wolfe recalls. He called her bluff and did just that. King licensed the imagery and Betty continues as one of CelebriDucks’ best sellers.

Wolfe also got a fast education in how complex making a simple toy could be. “I had to fabricate them in China, a galaxy far, far away. There were issues about floating, because our ducks have bigger heads. Hardness of the plastic. Packaging.” You name it, there were lots of hurdles to overcome.

The effort was rewarded. CelebriDucks exploded after an Atlantic City paper followed up on a press release Wolfe sent out. The Philadelphia 76ers read the story and called wanting a CelebriDuck of superstar Allen Iverson. “We did that duck. The cornrows, the tattoos, the earring, everything was perfect.” The Yankees called, and the Cubs. So did companies as diverse as Reebok, Southwest Airlines, Pepsi and Subaru. “We flew in 2,000 ducks for the launch of Conan O’Brien’s new show.”

In a good year, CelebriDucks ships more than 100,00 ducks.

That was two decades ago. Now Wolfe, 59, is broadening the business, with a line of Canards sold with chocolates. But the initiative Wolfe is proudest of is bringing manufacturing back to America.

“The rubber duck was invented in America. We’re bringing it back. We have a factory in Ohio that will make a line of Hatched in the USA ducks. Eventually, they’ll make all of our ducks. To bring an industry back here is without a doubt one of the most important things I have ever been a part of.”

Wolfe’s Rules for Success

Have patience. This is Wolfe’s cardinal rule. “You should create something great. I believe that if you build it they will come, but it takes time.”

Count your money right. “It’s not how much money you make, it’s how much you keep. Overhead will destroy you. Work out of your bedroom. People think I spent $10,000 on my website. I spent $500.”

Outsource, outsource, outsource. Don’t add staff too quickly. “Let the business push you to the next level. I outsource 99% of what I do. I work out of my house in Marin, everybody else is scattered all over the world.”

Get feedback. “Don’t sit in a vacuum. Take the people you least want to talk to and get their feedback. In my company, everyone has carte blanche to talk to me about anything.”

Fail well. “Wasn’t it Churchill who said the key to success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm. Failure helps you fine-tune, come out stronger. And remember that many great brands got started in some of our worst economic times.”

Cool companies

What the duck? Craig Wolfe puts celebrity faces on rubber ducks.

Take one lazy afternoon, an excess of alcohol and two old friends shooting the breeze and what do you get? A great business idea.

Such was the case with CelebriDucks, a new take on an old toy — rubber duckies with famous faces under their bills, like President Obama and Elvis Presley.

“Our most popular, even internationally, is Mr. T,” said founder Craig Wolfe. “I had no idea how much everyone loved rubber ducks.”

He started the company in 1998 with $100,000 he made from selling his precious art animation company. Since that time, CelebriDucks has sold more than one million ducks and will hit $1 million in revenue this year. With 12 to 15 new ducks to be added to the line next year, the company is projected to grow by 50% in 2012.

Not bad for a guy who is the company’s only employee. He outsources all other tasks to 25 subcontractors. He also works from his home in California’s Marin County. “I resist expansion, build organically and turn down all investor’s offers,” he said.

Wolfe negotiates licensing and pays a percentage of every sale to those celebrities or estates he selects to “duckify.” Some licenses are limited like Charlie Chaplin — and after the run, these ducks are “retired from the pond” — he said. Others, like the Jesus duck, will be with us always, he added.

Wolfe is delighted by suggestions he gets for new ducks from fans and collectors. “I keep a running list of celebrities I’d like to depict,” he said “But there are so many ducks and so little time.”

Bevo Ducks Make a Splash with UT Fans

At Home in Austin

UT fans are known for their unyielding loyalty to Bevo and her boys, and now, thanks to former Austin resident Craig Wolfe, fans can replace their rival-Michigan spirited yellow rubber duckies with a bath time friend who sports a UT twist: a Bevo rubber duck.

CelebriDucks, the company behind the bath tub Bevo, was recently voted as a top 100 gift to give by Entertainment Weekly. The company created the first ever celebrity rubber ducks to resemble the greatest icons of film, music, athletics, and history. They have produced CelebriDucks for the NBA, Major League Baseball, the NHL, NASCAR, NCAA collegiate mascots and also for famous people, such as Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe, Barack Obama, The Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, James Dean, KISS, James Brown, The Blues Brothers, Mr. T, Shakespeare, and the world’s first ever 100% recycled “Green” duck. To date they have created over 200 different CelebriDucks and have pioneered a whole new collectible.

When asked how he came up with the idea to turn icons into rubber ducks, Wolfe answered that Austin is “a very inspiring and creative place to be to come up with good ideas.” Since launching, the company has received a tremendous amount of publicity, having been on almost every news network from NBC, Fox, the CBS Evening Magazine (three times), CNN, to ABC, and more. They have been featured in a range of periodicals spanning U.S. News and World Report to Playboy, and CelebriDucks have even been guests on Jay Leno’s Tonight Show, twice.

Trying to explain why CelebriDucks has so many media outlets and customers quacking, Galen Jones of Red Nightlife Magazine explained, “These little critters are amazingly detailed, while still maintaining the charming qualities that make rubber duckies so, well, collectible.” The ducks, all claiming Canardland as home, are proof that Austinites have a knack for keeping things both weird and waddled. Wolfe cautions, though, “If people want a Bevo, they better act quickly; he’s going to be sold out shortly and we don’t know yet when new arrivals will come in.”

Entrepreneurial Success: 6 Questions with Craig Wolfe

Hatched in the USA! – Wall Street Journal
Rubber Duck Industry Returns to the U.S.

Name: Craig Wolfe
Business: CelebriDucks
Headquarters: San Rafael, Calif.
Industry: Consumer Manufactured Goods
Year begun: 1998

What was the challenge your business was facing as a result of the economy?

The Rubber Duck was invented in America. Now every one is made outside the U.S. Rising prices, longer delivery times and quality-control issues were becoming a major factor in working in China and threatening the company. We decided to bring the industry back to America to Ohio where it all began.

What was the innovative idea you put in place?

We were already the only U.S. company doing our artwork and sculpting here for rubber ducks. Now we were going to bring back the actual final production to America. Everyone said it was impossible with labor costs and safety-law requirements. We were willing to take the risk!

What significant milestone has this innovative idea lead to since Jan. 1, 2009?

We suddenly have companies and businesses lining up to get made-in-America ducks! Not only can we produce them in America, but we can do smaller production runs so more companies can have their own custom ducks made here. Plus our delivery times are now shorter, opening up so many more possibilities.

Please explain your innovation at greater length.

I was the largest publisher in the country of artwork from television commercials, creating the first ever animation art lines for Coca-Cola, Anheuser-Busch, M&M/Mars, Pillsbury, etc. The rubber duck, like jazz, is an American art form that originated here. Thus CelebriDucks was born as a side business where we created the first ever line of celebrity rubber ducks of the greatest icons of film, music, history and athletics. We felt we could take the level of detail in the sculpting and painting of rubber ducks to a whole new level and elevate the art form altogether. We were even voted one of the top 100 Gifts by Entertainment Weekly and thus sold off the animation business to concentrate on ducks!

Although the rubber duck was invented in America, over the years with all the outsourcing of our manufacturing, it got to the point where not one rubber duck was even made here anymore. In fact, we were the only U.S. company still doing our artwork and sculpting here. But I wanted more than that. I wanted to bring the whole industry back. And then something very unique happened.

We got a call from the Seiberling Estate. Seiberling was one of the original rubber companies in America and they went on to create Goodyear Tire. They also were one of the first ones to  create  rubber duckies! They are in Ohio where they offer tours of their beautiful estate. Back in the early 1930s, with the release of Disney’s Snow White, Seiberling’s director of marketing approached Walt Disney about becoming one of their first licensees and creating a line of rubber Disney characters including a rubber Donald Duck. They were tremendously successful.

When we started speaking to Seiberling, we all agreed that it would be an extraordinary story to actually create a rubber duck for them right back in Ohio where it all began. Our art department was already in Cincinnati. Our new factory was also in Ohio. So why not start to bring the whole industry back here. Seiberling was very excited and the joy of seeing it all come full circle not only to Ohio, but also to the actual place where it all began and create our first made-in-America duck for Seiberling and also for hundreds of other companies has become a reality!

And so we are currently in the process of making ducks here. It has been much more creative with costs and governmental laws, but we are doing it. To deal with the intricacy of our hand painting, the wife of the owner of the factory created a group of stay-at-home moms who are artists to form a painting cottage industry. Bottom line, I am so happy and proud to be able to bring this industry back here. May it be the first of many!

Millionaire Interview: Craig Wolfe – Founder of Celebriducks – Rubber Duckies that look like celebrities as seen on NBC, FOX, ABC, CNN, ESPN, TNT, VH1 and many more

Don’t Let Work Make You Feel Trapped
By Liza Porteus Viana                                                                                                                                               

FOXBusiness

Craig Wolfe, who was featured in FOXBusiness.com’s Small Office Home Office profile series,
got into the animation marketing business more than 20 years ago, working with large corporations such as Coca-Cola, Anheuser-Busch, M&M/Mars, Hershey’s and Campbell Soup.

He ran his business from home then, and still does today, only now his business is of a slightly different nature. Wolfe went from animation marketing to designing and creating rubber ducks in the likeness of celebrities, such as baseball star Derek Jeter and comic Lisa Lampanelli, from his home-based company, CelebriDucks.

Although he got into the business with little relevant experience – a college degree in business and religion didn’t help much in the animation business – Wolfe today is able to make a living doing what he loves. But, he said, didn’t get here without a few bumps in the road.

Here are three tips Wolfe offers to anyone thinking of starting their own business.

No. 1: Remember: you are your brand; branding of yourself as an extension will only be as good as your brand.

So your top priority should be to build a great, strong brand, and the natural extension to promote yourself as the brand will happen organically. Promoting yourself first has no substance behind it. Think Richard Branson of Virgin and Steve Jobs of Apple – they had the respected brand first, the personalities later became intrinsically intertwined with the already-winning brands.

No. 2: It’s not how much money you make, it’s how much you keep! Paying attention to overhead costs is key; they take down more businesses that you can imagine.

No. 3: Know that you are never without options. It’s easy to feel trapped when things aren’t working out the way you hoped. But if you can see every misfortune or difficult moment as nothing more than another moment ripe with potential and realize that you can make something out of it, things happen, orders arrive, people call, and onward and upward.

“Never let your mind go into a space where you feel trapped,” Wolfe said. “I don’t know why they don’t teach that in business school, because to me it is at the heart of every successful business venture that had to overcome adversity.”