1. Why is the development of an entire product line critical to Preserve’s growth and success?

When Eric Hudson graduated from business school with his MBA, he did what most people do. He went out and got a real job. After about six years, the daily grind in corporate America had gotten old. “My family was a bit crunchy and had been known to actually hug trees,” recalls Hudson, “but it wasn’t until the early ’90s that I decided I wanted to marry my professional career with my love of nature.”
As a teenager, he remembered his dentist reminding him to hold his toothbrush at a 45-degree angle, but he was always surprised that few toothbrushes were actually shaped for that angle.
When it came time to start his own business, he enlisted his father—
an industrial designer specializing in automobiles and boats—to help him design a better-shaped toothbrush. Once they came up with a design they liked, they sought the approval of several dentists.
At the same time, Hudson became aware of how few environmentally friendly products there were in the marketplace. The products available may have been made of recycled or recyclable materials, but they were more expensive and usually didn’t work as well. He also noticed that while more communities in his native Massachusetts were starting recycling programs, much of what people were throwing in the bins was food containers made from #5 plastic. At the time, few companies reused that type of plastic, and it often ended up in the landfill. Hudson knew there had to be a clever way to reuse that plastic for his toothbrush.