http://www.Hawk-n-Trowel.com

http://www.hawkmate.com

http://www.starscenic.com

Hawk-n-Trowel - Index

Hawk-n-Trowel - Hawk & Trowel - Index

26 ◆ www.Hawk-n-Trowel.com ◆ Spring 2008
been simple, but it had legs. After a year and a half, the idea
had become a patent in Niedfeld’s name. Th e attorney’s fees,
by the way, were money well spent, according to Niedfeld.
With his lawyer’s guidance, he was able to craft a patent
agreement that prohibits anyone else from marketing any tool
of any kind that attaches knives to hawks.
Th e patent was step one. Step two was getting the
product into the hands of plasterers. Niedfeld’s goal was to
make enough off the Hawkmate to put his daughters through
college, so although his friends and employees were his fi rst
customers, he needed a larger base to work from. And where
better to look than the Internet?
Internet bazaar eBay was fi rst. Niedfeld manufactured
a batch of 1,000 to sell online. Next came plastering tool
giants AllWall and Marshalltown. By off ering AllWall 50
tools for free, he got his foot in the door, and now AllWall
is the Hawkmate’s biggest distributor. In the past few
months, Niedfeld has been fi elding substantial orders from
Marshalltown, taken his fi rst order from Australian supplier
ProPlaster, and has begun to explore the possibility of
developing a line of Hawkmate taping tools.
Niedfeld’s ultimate goal is to license the Hawkmate, but
in the meantime, he says he’s ready to do whatever it takes to
get it off the ground.
˛ www.hawkmate.com