The pet rock made it's inventor Gary Dahl a lot of money when it started a buyer's trend in April of 1975. Gary was 63 years old and in the advertising business working as an advertisement copywriter out of Califormia.
According to chacha.com Dahl sold enough pet rocks in six months to earn about 15 million dollars.
By some accounts Dahl got his pet rock idea into the market from a couple of investors who speculated on his idea. The venture was capitalized in part by Georges Coakley and John Heagherty.
At about four bucks a rock and hardly no markup one wonders how the Dragon Den guru's would have reacted to an appearance by the pet rock invention.
Face it. Dahl walks on stage and says to Arlene Dickinson of Kevin O'Leary, as he shows them a tiny rock with eyes painted on it, " I can see sales taking off to 10 million within a year".
O'Leary's flame would likely have been, " Look, I can't see a market for your pet rock but I might definitely see you in a straight jacket and having one of these in your recovery room. "
"I'm Out".................
Inventions don't have to be great they just have to stir up emotions sometimes.
If this 1975 Dahl invention is any proof of the saying "invention is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration" then I would have to think the work here went into picking pebbles.
What did you get if you bought a Dahl rock in 1975 ?
The original pet rock came in a box and had some straw added for the comfort of your stony buddy.
These fad pets were found stranded on a Baja Beach in California. And if you adopted one for $3.95, you would also recieve an owners manual with instructions to care for it.
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