<![CDATA[Happy Owl Studio - Blog]]>Tue, 25 Jun 2024 22:23:27 -0700Weebly<![CDATA[What Sustainability means to us]]>Thu, 16 Jan 2014 18:51:08 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/what-sustainability-means-to-usBefore starting Happy Owl Studio, our founders worked as a visual effects artist, as an executive in the non-profit sector and as a writer/director. In other words, we were average consumers, not producers. As consumers, we’d buy a single case for our phone or computer, and never thought about its production, distribution or disposal.

Changing our point of view by becoming producers opened our eyes. Although we had heard about Texas-sized piles of plastic in the ocean, and the ubiquitous global warming debate, we didn’t give it much thought until we were contributing to the problem.

We started to think critically about our production process - the toxic chemicals used to create the materials for the cases, the labor force that constructed them, the distances that everything traveled, the unrecyclable packaging that would be thrown away immediately upon purchase, and the leather case itself that would likely be sent to the landfill a year later when the user purchased a new tablet. By happenstance we were exposed to The Story of Stuff, Zero Waste Home, and Radical Homemakers. We learned about the disposable economy, planned obsolescence, externalized costs and and the extreme amount of waste created by the current materials economy. We learned that for every single can of trash created by a home consumer (the packaging of our cases for instance) there were 70 cans of trash created by the extraction, manufacturing and distribution process. We learned that a shocking 99% of all the materials that flow through the consumer economy are thrown away within six months of their purchase.

And, we saw these realities with our own eyes when we took cartons of returned defective products to the local landfill and saw first hand that there is no “away,” and when we throw things “away,” we are actually building a mountain of toxic trash.

Opening our eyes to the negative impact we were having on the ecosystem was scary. We knew we wanted our business to make a positive contribution to the world, but we didn’t know how we would get from where we were to where we wanted to be and still be in business.

Fortunately, we have learned that sustainability is also good for the bottom line. We were in development on The Cashbox when we began our sustainability journey, and we took the first step toward changing our business by building The Cashbox locally in San Diego, CA. This single change opened the door to many more, and made each subsequent change easier. All of a sudden we had so much more control over the materials that were used, the quality control standards and the production timeline. The Cashbox is made from highly renewable fast-growing bamboo, all of the components are selected because they are the most ecosystem-friendly solution available, and it is constructed by workers who are accountable for the quality of their work, are paid a fair wage, and take pride in a job well done. Sales have flourished.

It makes sense that sustainability is at the heart of a successful business. After all, finite resources cannot grow indefinitely. We have learned that sustainability is not just about feel-good idealism, it is a foundational element of a strong business.

In 2009, like the rest of the nerd-world, we waited with bated breath for what we would come to know as the iPad. Our excitement about this “magical and revolutionary” device was our only impetus for beginning this company. Now, our vision for Happy Owl Studio is much larger. And because of our experience with The Cashbox, we know it can be done, and we know consumers want it. Our vision is to contribute to a new economy - where beautiful and functional products are produced in a way that is good for the whole ecosystem.

]]><![CDATA[Why we believe in Bitcoin]]>Tue, 14 Jan 2014 23:53:36 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/why-we-believe-in-bitcoinBitcoin
Some have asked why we offer a 10% discount for purchases made with Bitcoin. Bitcoin has no payment processing fees (except when being transferred into USD), so we save a few percentage points just for using it, but certainly not 10%, so what gives? Well, we think Bitcoin is a pretty big deal, for a lot of reasons, and we think it's worth a little bit of our margins to help it grow by getting other merchants into it. Here's why we think it's so great.

1. It's fast, cheap and secure
Banks take days to clear checks or make wire transfers available, credit card processing payments take at least a day and sometimes 3-4 to be deposited. Bitcoin payments are instantaneous. And the Bitcoin protocol has zero-built in transaction fees, whereas credit card processing can cost ~3% or more, and wire transfers and Western Union can be even more expensive. And since Bitcoin transactions are handled between anonymously-owned wallets, corporations and governments can't spy on private citizens' buying habits. 

2. It's open-source, decentralized & democratic
The rules that govern Bitcoin are open source and available for everyone and anyone to inspect. The number of Bitcoins currently in circulation is also public knowledge, as is the pre-determined rate-of-release of new Bitcoins, keeping it's inflation-rate set and limited, unlike some fiat currencies. Rather than entrusting the rules that govern the currency to wealthy corporations or private bank owners, tens of thousands of individuals around the world participate in the Bitcoin network through a process called mining - which provides the cryptographic proofs that move Bitcoins from one wallet to another securely. Because they're all running the same open-source software, changes to the software (and, by extension, the way Bitcoin works) can therefore only be made slowly and when the majority of the network agree that they're a good idea. This decentralization means that some institution can't take the currency from private individuals and use it to bail out undercapitalized banks.

3. It's easy to accept and use Bitcoins at your business
If you think you're ready to start accepting Bitcoin at your business, it has never been easier to get started. E-commerce and cart-systems have been all-over Bitcoin for a while now, so you have a lot of options for your web-store. But what about your brick-and-mortar retail store? Here's a (incomplete) list of retail POS platforms that allow you to accept Bitcoin:
Many companies chose to accept Bitcoins as a method of checkout, but never handle the virtual currency themselves - their checkout system exchanges it into USD for a nominal fee and makes deposits into a bank account similar to how credit card processing is handled. Overstock.com is one such company, and according to CEO Patrick Byrne, choosing to start accepting Bitcoins has paid off, with over $130,000 in Bitcoin sales the first day they were accepted, with almost all of those purchases coming from new customers. Now you can tap into the wealth that Bitcoin savers are sitting on and increase your store's sales by appealing directly to current holders of Bitcoins by getting on the map.

And since transferring into and out of USD is the most expensive part of using Bitcoin, some of your employees may ask to be paid in Bitcoins - well, now it's easy to do that too (yes, the IRS still gets theirs and it's all above-board).

*Your Cashbox or PayStand can be used with these Bitcoin POS platforms to accept Bitcoins in your store.
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]]><![CDATA[Custom Woodworking Business - August 2013]]>Thu, 12 Sep 2013 02:26:43 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/custom-woodworking-business-august-2013Picture
The cover story of the August 2013 issue of Custom Woodworking Business magazine explored Happy Owl Studio and our production of  The Cashbox and PayStand.  If your cool enough to have a subscription, awesome.  If not, you can check it out here.
]]><![CDATA[Announcing Happy Owl Payment Solutions]]>Tue, 09 Apr 2013 01:52:27 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/announcing-happy-owl-payment-solutionsHappy Owl Studio is pleased to announce a credit card processing service to complement it's Cashbox line. Don't we sound corporate? :)
Choosing to manufacturing the Cashbox in the US increased it's production costs quite a bit. Overseas manufacturing is just plain less expensive (as most already know) because the costs are externalized. We're proud to be a part of the resurgence in American manufacturing and to be doing business where our employees are paid fairly, and sustainability is considered in every decision we make. But it left us with a higher price tag than much of our competition. We build our line from high quality and eco friendly bamboo, which is more expensive in material cost and labor time than the plastic that is usually used for POS systems and iPad stands. Because business owners are generally aware that they get what they pay for, the Cashbox's premium price has been welcomed by many of our customers as simply what quality costs, but many just cannot afford the expense. (Running a small business is hard, we know first hand!) It's for those customers that we came up with the Happy Owl Payment Solutions hardware subsidy.

Similar to the way a mobile carrier will sell handsets at a discounted price, subsidized by the service contract, we're offering the Cashbox, PayStand and PayFrame at as much as 50% off to customers who sign a 12-month contract to provide their Credit & Debit card processing service. 

So if you have perused the Cashbox or Paystand and were wondering why there is such a big difference in the price between the Happy Owl Payment Processing Solutions rate and those for Square and Paypal, we hope this explains it. When we began our business, part of our mission was to create quality products at an affordable price, so we are offering this option to continue that mission and put good design and ethical business practices within reach of more people. 

Annnnnd… In even better news our rates are super competitive. We've learned a ton about merchant agreements and fee schedules while setting up this new service. And since our primary business isn't selling merchant services, we aren't in it to "up sell" you or confuse you with double-talk and say-one-rate-but-mean-another shenanigans. So far, we have been able to offer a lower rate to everyone we have worked with. We promise to say it simply and to help you find the best fit for the nuances of your business. We have another blog post coming soon that goes into all the rate stuff in detail.
]]><![CDATA[New design for Cashbox and PayStand]]>Tue, 09 Apr 2013 00:38:45 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/new-design-for-cashbox-and-paystandPicture
The PayStand for iPad POS systems
When we first began designing the Cashbox, we were working primarily with Square's card reader in mind. Once we hit the market, we started to quickly realize just how many retailers were looking for more features than Square currently offered. Some folks needed features like keeping bar tabs open or taking table reservations, while others simply preferred the interface of apps like AmburApp or ShopKeepPOS. But what prevented us from accommodating these customers was the initial design of our PayStand. These higher end platforms use powered credit card readers - the iDynamo for older model iPads and the recently released uDynamo for iPad 4s. 

The card reader's need for power was not compatible with our arch design - the reader was about a foot away from the closest place we could run a power cable. And while we loved the look of our first design, we wanted to accommodate these other readers and were were adamant about hiding all the cables. We. Hate. Seeing. Cables!

So we went back to the drawing board and came up with a system that allows us to accommodate any reader - every reader we're aware of anyway - Square, PayPal Here, Intuit GoPayment, iDynamo, uDynamo.  without leaving any visible cables to manage. The tilting action is smoother and more reliable than ever, and it's even more compact and svelte than our first design.

Check out this behind the scenes video to see just how we make the new Cashbox, and to get a few glimpses of it in action. What do you think of the new design? Let us know in the comments
]]><![CDATA[Valentines Day Sale]]>Mon, 11 Feb 2013 21:06:26 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/valentines-day-sale
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]]><![CDATA[Sneak Peek: Wallet for iPad Mini]]>Fri, 25 Jan 2013 22:07:49 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/sneak-peek-wallet-for-ipad-mini This is a sneak peek from our development lab.  Excuse the rough photo's but we wanted to share this asap.  Don't show it to your iPad Mini yet - we're not quite done...
]]><![CDATA[The Wallet and The Clutch by Happy Owl Studio are compatible with the new iPad (3rd Generations)]]>Fri, 16 Mar 2012 21:45:51 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/the-wallet-and-the-clutch-by-happy-owl-studio-are-compatible-with-the-new-ipad-3rd-generationsTwo of Happy Owl Studio's co-founders, Ryan and Devon, got up way too early this morning to get in line for the new iPad, and boy was it worth every second. (being Apple fans from way back, we've got enough geek in us to actually enjoy the early morning lines - it's the energy)
Yes, yes, the new iPad is totally amazing and the retina display is truly beautiful, but the best news is that our Clutch & Wallet cases are a perfect fit! We have cases ready to order!
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]]><![CDATA[Our thoughts on the iPad 3 rumor mill]]>Mon, 05 Mar 2012 22:47:41 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/our-thoughts-on-the-ipad-3-rumor-millAt Happy Owl Studio we are on the edge of our seats, fidgeting with excitement for the release of Apple's next iPad. We try to stay up to date with many Apple-centric blogs and gadget sites and we felt the urge to give you a little insight into what we think are some fairly safe assumptions, features wise, on the upcoming release. Obviously, Apple has a knack for proving our best guesses completely wrong (usually in pretty cool ways), so take all this with a grain of salt.

Retina Display
First and foremost we are most excited about the retina display. When we first saw this come to life on the iPhone 4, no words could describe how truly blown away we were. This will be even more true with the iPad 3. Macrumors.com as well as iFixit have both been lucky enough to get their hands on the purported iPad 3 retina display (2048x1536) and have confirmed that the resolution is in fact double the current iPad 2 (1024x768). Thanks to this TUAW article, you can see the difference between the two. If true, your eyes will have never been treated this nice since the arrival of Planet Earth in HD. To give it some more perspective, the new iPad has almost as many pixels horizontally as the 27" iMac, and it actually has MORE pixels vertically!

Larger Rear Facing Camera
Another feature we feel fairly confident about is a bump in specs on the rear camera of the iPad 3. Although the evidence is still pretty light in this department, sites such asM.I.C Gadget have some pretty convincing shots of the back panel with an obviously enlarged camera lens. What is behind that lens though is anybodys guess and will most likely not be revealed until launch day. With the upgrade in the iPhone 4S camera, it is a fair assumption that the iPad3 3 won’t be too far behind.

Design
Finally, we come to the actual physical design. This gets our hearts pumping a little bit because if rumors are true, Happy Owl will be in luck because our current line may be compatible with the upcoming iPad 3. Engadget recently published this article, showing a purported back panel that is a hair length taller and also has a more gradual taper from the top of the bezel down to the flat portion of the back. For all intents and purposes, it still has the beautiful Ive-aesthetic of the iPad 2, but with undoubtedly more awesome internal guts.

Apple has an uncanny ability to take our breath away, and we have no reason to believe that the iPad 3 will be any different. Whether these rumors are in fact true or simply perfectly planted counter evidence, we can’t wait to hear what Cupertino has in store. Most importantly, we are excited that there is a possibility that our case line for iPad 2 will also work for iPad 3!! That said, we're not making any promises yet... two days to the Cooknote, and we can't wait ;)
]]><![CDATA[Oh, my. It's our new favorite tactile experience.]]>Mon, 13 Feb 2012 22:52:22 GMThttp://www.happyowlstudio.com/blog/oh-my-its-our-new-favorite-tactile-experienceAt Happy Owl Studio we have a serious love affair with Apple's industrial design. Its why we started this company after all. And the iPhone is no exception. Steve Jobs said, "Its like a beautiful old Leica camera" and we agree. With its sexy combination of glass and steel, it just feels good in the hand. But it's so darn slippery and cold sometimes isn't it?

Enter our newest product - the Leather Skin and the Bamboo Skin for iPhone 4/4S. Beautiful old Leica cameras were made of steel, glass and leather. The leather skin and the bamboo skin make the iPhone complete and feel ooh-so-good in hand, protect the glass back and look great doing it. It's the in-hand experience that really seals the deal, so get your hands on one. You'll be glad you did.

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