Necessity is truly the mother of invention , but so is the desire to avoid handling complaints .
For years , Joe Altieri worked selling parts for windows and doors . He found that 3 to 5 percent of window screens were damaged before they were ever installed in a home . They were easy to break , hard to install , and oftentimes had to be replaced in the field , which meant he had to replace and install them himself . So Altieri decided there had to be a better way .
He began to experiment with building a new type of screen in his garage . His wife , Alisha , had been using the garage for her car , but graciously agreed to park outside so Altieri could work on his new project . In fact , she parked outside for two years while he tried virtually every material he could find to develop a new , easier-to-use window screen that would hold up well . Altieri spent lots of time at the lumber and hardware store , shopping for new materials to try .
One day the couple was having some electrical work done at their home when Altieri noticed that the product the electrician was using was very interesting . The worker explained it was electrical fish tape . The flexible material was just what Altieri had been looking for , and he created the very first flexible screen , which he describes as his “ bubble gum and duct tape ” prototype .
He had never invented anything before but remembered that his grandfather had invented an electrical extension cord that wound up by itself some 40 years earlier . Although his grandfather had never done anything with his invention , years later the retractable extension cords were being mass produced and sold in stores everywhere . This lesson was not lost on Altieri .
He did a patent search and found that window screens were invented in the early 1900s , and nothing had really changed since . It was exciting to find that he had made something really unique , so he set up a manufacturing plant in Export , calling his new product FlexScreen .
These new screens were durable , easily bendable and they expanded into place without all the jarring of the old screens . People loved it !
After he had been making FlexScreens for a while and enjoying some success , the ABC-TV show “ Shark Tank ” contacted him . This is very unusual since hundreds of thousands of people apply to get on the show each year , and only a few are chosen . But Altieri and his team were doing a lot of social media , and the product caught the show ’ s attention .
A window with FlexScreen window screens . Photo courtesy of FlexScreen , LLC .
He was a bit apprehensive at first , not really wishing to be skewered and grilled by “ Mr . Wonderful ” on the show . For two weeks prior to his appearance , he and his co-workers held mock “ Shark Tank ” sessions , with rapid-fire questions about the product .
Finally , Altieri flew to Los Angeles for the taping . His segment was actually 2.5 hours of filming edited down to just 13 minutes .
“ It was this almost out-of-body thing that I was really there ,” he recalls , “ and quite terrifying actually .” But all of the practice had paid off and he did an amazing State job , Representative landing a deal Bob with Brooks Lori , his Greiner . wife Sue , and MHS President Carl Patty
Altieri says that Greiner and her team have been wonderful to work with , and she actually called him on a Friday night a few weeks ago . Even now , he finds it a surreal experience to be chatting with Lori Greiner on the phone while walking the dog .
The company has grown exponentially , and now has five bases , including one in Toronto . And the problems of the past year haven ’ t slowed it down .
“ People are putting more time and money into their homes since they ’ re not able to travel and go out to dinner as much ,” explains Altieri . March is usually a slow month , but March 2021 was the biggest in the company ’ s history .
“ We were extremely proud to represent the Pittsburgh area on ‘ Shark Tank ,’” Altieri says , adding that the show filmed a little revisit episode a couple of weeks ago that should air in the coming months .
The company employs 150 people and has made life a little easier for homeowners . All great things begin with a great idea . And sometimes those ideas can change your life . n
MURRYSVILLE ❘ SUMMER 2021 11