Woman sees her invention, dream become reality

By Amy D. Fienen

amyfienen@yahoo.com

The dream to invent the next can't-live-without-it product is one that many people harbor, but for most would-be inventors, the idea never reaches beyond the scope of the imagination. But a woman whose career in hair has its roots in Kingsburg has invented what may just prove to be the next big thing in hair.

Kelly Fitzpatrick, who will be best remembered by Kingsburg residents as Kelly Dias, did hair in Kingsburg from 1994-2001. The mother of two has taken what she saw as the biggest problem women have with their hair and turned it into a business that is already gaining nationwide attention.

"Can you believe that something so simple didn't exist?" Fitzpatrick said of the "bumpit," a plastic device women apply to the crown of the head to achieve that ever-elusive volume.

Fitzpatrick said that the most common complaint she heard from the clientele who used to frequent her salon was that they could never achieve the volume in their hair that they had after a trip to the stylist.

"Everybody would say, 'I can't get it to do that,'" Fitzpatrick said of the look that women achieve by "ratting" the hair at the crown to give it volume and lift. "Women would be at my shop Christmas morning wanting their hair poofed."

When a hand injury that she'd received as a teenager made it difficult for Fitzpatrick to continue doing hair, she got out of that business and ventured into real estate. She opened The Loan Broker, a mortgage business in Fresno, but that business took a downturn along with the housing market. It was while she was watching "The Big Idea With Donny Deutsch" one night that she felt inspired to come up with a solution to women's volume woes. "The Big Idea," which airs on CNBC, is a show about making millions doing what you love.

Realizing that doing hair really is her first love -- something she'd wanted to do since childhood -- Fitzpatrick felt a calling to get back into it somehow, but knew that she couldn't perform the day-to-day duties of a stylist because of the pain in her hand. Even while working in the mortgage business, she would steal away every January to attend a hair show.

"It's the only real thing I'd wanted to do my whole life," she said.

With a little money she had stashed away, Fitzpatrick set out to create a prototype for a device that volumizes the hair. She knew that what she needed to do was lift the hair off the scalp somehow. She said she had about 50 different prototypes using everything imaginable.

"I had a whole spare bedroom full of parts," she said. "There were some rough-looking prototypes. I have kitchen knives with Velcro on top!"

Katherine Dias, her 20-year-old daughter who often served as a guinea pig, was not a big fan of the kitchen knife and Velcro contraption.

"That one hurt," she recalls with a laugh.

Fitzpatrick ended up working with a custom-injection molding company in Fresno called Jet Mold, in finding a design that would effectively grip hair. The end result was the "bumpit," a curved plastic piece with tiny gripping "arrows" that hides underneath the hair. The utility-patent-pending design comes in four colors to blend with light blonde, medium blonde, brunette and black hair, and there are three different sizes, depending on the amount of volume desired. A pack of four sells for $19.99.

Fitzpatrick started her new company, Big Happie Hair, four months ago. She has an office in Fresno's Riverpark area, complete with a large mirror where she can style the hair of would-be bumpit buyers. A warehouse in the back stores her merchandise and her son's drum set. Her daughter and son are among her handful of employees, and Fitzpatrick said that at Big Happie Hair, work is fun.

Fitzpatrick and Dias first started spreading the word about bumpits by traveling to hair trade shows. Dias serves as a model and spokesperson for her mother's invention. The reception they received at shows in New York, Chicago and Miami was overwhelming.

"We couldn't physically leave our booth because there were so many people lined up," Dias said.

"People stop to see what all the clamor is -- it's just fun, fun, fun," Fitzpatrick said.

Because bumpits are so easy to use, even those who consider themselves to be "hair-challenged" can use them, Fitzpatrick said.

Over 17,000 bumpits have been sold in under five months, and Fitzpatrick is confident that they are just getting started. Bumpits are being sold in 400 stores, and they just signed a deal with Gottschalk's to sell them in 80 of their stores. The mother-daughter team will be appearing on the Home Shopping Network at the end of this month. The Australian Home Shopping Network sold out of bumpits after Fitzpatrick's appearance on their show, and recently placed a second order.

But what really gets Fitzpatrick excited is that celebrities are starting to buzz about bumpits. "American Idol" finalists Carly Smithson and Brooke White wore them for their "AI" photo shoots.

"They wanted some more flown out to them so they could wear them on the tour," Fitzpatrick said.

Bumpits are starting to infiltrate the television industry, and are a hit among beauty pageant contestants.

"The Miss California girls just had a pageant, and they all loved it," Dias said.

Dias is a senior at California State University, Fresno and said that every member of her sorority has a bumpit. Fitzpatrick said she can't go to Sunday School without being bombarded with requests for a "bump."

Big Happie Hair has already been in talks with companies interested in purchasing their idea, but Fitzpatrick said should that happen, she will remain working for the company.

"It's my product -- nobody loves it as much as I do," she said.

Fitzpatrick said that while of course it would be great to make millions on the bumpit, for now she is content doing something that she loves. She welcomes anyone who is interested to stop by her office to try out a bumpit, and she said she loves seeing the way women's faces light up when introduced to an accessory that makes them feel pretty.

"When your hair's good, your day's good, so a lifetime of happy hair is a happy life," Fitzpatrick said.

Fitzpatrick and Dias' appearance on the Home Shopping Network will air live on July 29 at 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., and on July 30 at 7 a.m. For more information about bumpits, log onto bighappiehair.com.