Clipped!

A decade ago there were some 15,000 local stationers in the United States. That population has been reduced by 75% as giant consolidators like Staples have remade the industry. Today manufacturers pay huge amounts, sometimes as much as $60,000, for a whole page in the catalog of a wholesaler. For that kind of money, they're buying access to the top retailers. In addition, the manufacturer pays a "rebate" to the retailers if they do a certain level of business in the manufacturer's goods. The greater the volume, the bigger the rebate. The office-supply industry has become a volume-driven business that encourages the large retailers and distributors to carry those vendors with the deepest product lines.

Such arrangements are in industry lingo "soft costs," but for small suppliers like Ace, they amount to a hard reality. What Linda Froehlich heard over and over again as she shopped the SuperClip around was: "It's a great product. What else do you have?"

The answer: not much. The Froehlichs do not have an army of product developers dreaming up new ideas and extending their line. They have two stock-keeping units (SKUs), the SuperClip in gold and silver. Acco, the corporation that dismissed the SuperClip as a novelty, has more than 5,000 SKUs.

"There's no doubt in my mind this product could be on the shelves and making millions. That possibility has just been eliminated from my life," says Froehlich. "Maybe it's a compliment to have so many imitate the product."

Despite her regrets, Froehlich's reflective moments appear to be strength-gathering interludes in an ongoing struggle. In the latest chapter she and Richard have conceded that they will go offshore, to Taiwan, to have the SuperClip made. "We'll meet the competition's price, and our quality will be better," she vows.

Still, there's a hollow feeling about that decision. She and Richard always prided themselves on being American manufacturers; then there's the gnawing unease that they may be in Taiwan today, but tomorrow will they be chasing lower labor costs to India or Pakistan? Their "manufacturer" is, in fact, set up in a 2,000-square-foot space in what amounts to the ground floor of his apartment building. "It's not a factory as you or I would know it," says Linda glumly.

Similarly, the Froehlichs will extend their product line by introducing the SuperClip in various colors to appeal to the school and office markets and hope to offer a midsize paper clip that will double as a money clip. But the word on the street is that Acco is also about to introduce colored versions.

Still, Froehlich remains resolutely optimistic as she recounts various other initiatives. Ace has landed contracts with the federal government, the Arthritis Foundation really likes the SuperClip because it's so much easier to use, and Froehlich has even been trying to induce a national fast-food chain to give away SuperClips as a back-to-school promotion. "There are a lot of outlets we have yet to try," she says brightly.

And yet those efforts remain forever shadowed by what might have been. "We've put a lot of hard work into this, and at some point you want to reap the benefits," she says. "There's no question; ours is the best. We've got too much of our life invested in it to quit."

Asked when that day might come, she immediately rebuffs the question. "I've worked too hard, and I'm not about to let go," says Froehlich. "In 20 years this product will be everywhere." That may be true. Less certain, though, is how much of it will be hers.

Edward O. Welles is a senior writer at Inc.

What Makes the SuperClip So Super?

Imitation may indeed be the sincerest form of flattery. But you can't take it to the bank. The SuperClip's imitators are now legion--and they have something else in common. The oversize paper clips sold by Staples, OfficeMax, Office Depot, Target Stores, Wal-Mart, and Kmart are all made in Taiwan.

The Superclip Difference