Wizard idea spells success for Mike

A SHAW man has come up with a magic idea which he is turning into a business.

Michael Jackson has established Wizard Innovations Ltd to develop and market a product aimed at a range of applications from homes and vehicles to offices and retail outlets.

Wizardstrip is the result of several months of dedicated research and development by Mike (52) and his business partner Mark Luby, who has Oldham connections through his father who has a business in the borough.

The pair have taken on an idea to display notices, pictures and drawings — in fact, anything which is light and flexible — and developed a product which is eye-catchingly simple.

Wizardstrip can be used as a display tool without the need for pins, staples, putty or tape.

Mike said: “Simply slide whatever you wish to display into the profile. Installation does not require any tools or special instructions. Wizardstrip has been designed to offer the user total control and freedom to decide upon the application and can be attached to many surfaces from glass and brickwork to PCs and vehicle interiors.”

After working on several prototypes — he had time on his hands after being made redundant after nearly 30 years in the motor vehicle industry — Mike has developed a system which is currently awaiting a patent application decision.

The strip was developed in conjunction with Greenfield plastic extrusion firm Standring Booker and is now ready to go to market.

All material used in the production process is recycled.

Mike has made inroads into a number of retail outlets with his eye-catching packaging but the big-ticket is the NHS, which is looking at the product through its central procurement process.

He has also placed some of the strips in BT vehicles and the drivers are finding Wizardstrip invaluable, he added.

To date, around £30,000 has been invested in bringing Wizardsrtip to market in its current format.

Now is when the hard works really starts, added Mike.