Ben Eberle, a senior at Hobart High School, is set to graduate in just a few weeks – and he’ll do so as a business owner. He crafted Tow Scout, a clever product that works as a portable rearview mirror for watercraft such as boats and kayaks.
The idea is entirely his own – having thought of it as a way to help his family keep his sister safe as she learned how to waterski. Eberle’s dad needed to keep an eye on his daughter as he towed her along, but their family’s boat lacked any kind of mirror or an easy way to install one.
“On all pontoon boats, we found that there’s no real place to mount a mirror without drilling holes or installing some kind of metal bar to attach it to,” Eberle said. “I noticed that our boat had plenty of cup holders readily available right on the dashboard, so I duct-taped a mirror to my dad’s cell phone holder and stuck it in there. It was perfect. It was exactly what we needed, and at first it was just something to help my family.”
Eberle’s mom, a teacher at Hobart High School, saw the prototypes and came to him with a suggestion – get in touch with Daniel Schultz, who teaches engineering and entrepreneurship classes at Hobart. In his class, Schultz challenges students to innovate a solution to a problem and to start building the foundations for a business around that solution. Eberle had not taken Schultz’s class, but the teacher was happy to coach him anyway.
“Ben is the perfect example of someone seeing a problem and finding a solution to it,” Schultz said. “That type of thinking is exactly what we want out of our youths and everyone else. I love it when a student like Ben comes along and they’re passionate about something. It makes my job a lot easier!”
Eberle, under Schultz’s mentorship, entered Indiana’s Innovate WithIN competition where he was challenged to design, pitch, and build a business around Tow Scout. The contest, open to all Indiana high school students, offers thousands of dollars in scholarships – and even seed funding to help grow the budding businesses.
Making the product itself was just the first step. Eberle needed to refine his branding, outline a sustainable business model, establish an early marketing plan, and more. As part of the process, he connected with Domenica Hartman, an intellectual property (IP) attorney and founder of Hartman Global, who has helped many of Schultz’s students in the past with mentorship and provisional patent applications
“When I see youth with this kind of entrepreneurial spirit and the passion and commitment of Mr. Schultz, it’s inspiring,” Hartman said. “It really makes you think that, if the future is in these kids’ hands, then the world is in good shape.”
Hartman Global provides services to companies and organizations such as General Electric, General Motors, and Purdue University. For a young innovator like Eberle, the chance to work directly with professionals like Hartman is invaluable.
“Domenica is constantly helping the kids understand trademarks, patents, and more,” Schultz said. “Working with people like her, professionals with experience out in the real world, makes a huge impact on these students. They come in here thinking that nobody cares what they’re doing, but she shows that there are people out there who do care and who will listen to them.”
Eberle and Tow Scout went on to secure second place in the statewide Innovate WithIN competition. He credits Hobart High School with providing the support to make that achievement possible.
“I’ve been really successful through Innovate WithIN, and a lot of that has to do with the fact that the school really likes to make things happen for kids,” Eberle said. “They really allowed me the time I needed in my schedule to make this work and to help me become successful. I’m very grateful for that.”
Putting everything together for Innovate WithIN was a learning experience that Eberle explained is impossible to replicate in a traditional classroom.
“There are so many little things about business that you don’t even know are real until you're actually making one,” he said, “That’s why I’m very passionate about sharing my story; you learn so much from this process. I’ve never learned more than I have doing this, and this was originally just a side project. You learn so much about yourself and how the world works.”
Eberle plans to take the momentum he’s built even further and make sure that Tow Scout is known well beyond the confines of his local dock.
“I’ve a provisional patent filed, I have an LLC in my name, and I’m working on getting a company bank account,” Eberle said. “I also have a partnership with Trine University to help me make my product. It’s been an amazing journey, and I’m glad to have done it. It’s been a maturing experience.”
To learn more about Hartman Global IP Law, visit hartmanglobal-ip.com. For more information about Hobart High School’s efforts to help students innovate, visit hobart.k12.in.us.
