Now & Zen

Now & Zen, Inc. is an American company founded by Steve McIntosh in January 1995.^[1] Based in Boulder, Colorado. The target market for the firm's brand is the demographic known as the "Cultural Creatives," a progressive segment of American society that has been responsible for the substantial growth of the natural foods industry. McIntosh had previously worked as an executive in the natural foods industry and sought to create consumer electronic products that would appeal to this same demographic.^[2]

The Now & Zen product that first proved the concept of a "natural electronic product" was The Zen Alarm Clock, which was introduced in early 1996.^[3]

The original Zen Alarm Clock is a triangular-shaped wooden clock that wakes users gradually with a series of acoustic chimes. In 2001 the firm introduced a portable, digital version of its chiming alarm clock,^[4] which has now become the company’s most popular product. In 2005 the firm introduced an alarm clock and timer featuring a six-inch brass bowl-gong, called The Zen Timepiece.^[5]

As of 2008, Now & Zen’s product line remains popular, with the firm continuing to exhibit modest annual growth in sales volume.^[6]

Inspiration

McIntosh’s original intent when founding the company was to create useful household products that would reflect an emerging new "spiritual renaissance" aesthetic, combining the harmonic proportions of sacred geometry with motifs from traditional Japanese culture.^[7] He set out to create products like the Tiffany Lamp, which was both an appliance and an icon of Art Nouveau design.

Manufacture and patents

Originally, the firm manufactured most aspects of The Zen Alarm Clock at its factory in Longmont, Colorado. But over time the firm contracted out a variety of subassemblies, such as its wooden clock bodies. In 2003, after rejecting an acquisition bid from Gaiam, Inc., the firm adopted a new business model under which the complete manufacturing of finished products was done overseas by third party manufactures. This new business model allowed the firm to concentrate on marketing, leading to the opening of the company’s Downtown Boulder showroom.^[8]

Now & Zen holds two patents covering both the design and utility aspects of its chiming alarm clocks: U.S. Patent No. Des. 390,121, issued February 3, 1998, and U.S. Patent No. US 6,819,635 B2, issued November 16, 2004.

Products

All Now & Zen products have been conceived, designed, and invented by founder and president Steve McIntosh.^[9] Although the firm has produced a wide variety of "natural-themed" household products since its inception, its product line has now been largely limited to its acoustic alarm clocks and timers. The wood for all Now & Zen products is grown on North American tree farms and shipped to Shenzhen, China to be made into clock bodies. The electronics are made in Shenzhen, China, and the firm’s bowl-gongs are made in Moradabad, India.^[10]

Now & Zen's natural-themed products are closely associated with the natural foods industry, which has made Boulder, Colorado, its unofficial headquarters.^[11] Besides Now & Zen, other prominent Boulder-based natural product companies include Celestial Seasonings, where McIntosh worked as an executive prior to founding Now & Zen, Wild Oats Market, and Pangea Organics.^[12]

Popular culture

The Zen Alarm Clock is now well-recognized in American popular culture,^[13][14] having been reviewed by national media such as The New York Times,^[15] The Los Angeles Times,^[16] the Good Morning America television show,^[17] The Washington Post,^[18] and Good Housekeeping Magazine.^[19] Now & Zen's Zen Alarm Clock continues to be widely reviewed and discussed on blogs featured on websites throughout the world.^{[20][21][22][23][24][25]} Zen Clocks are sold worldwide, but distribution outside the U.S. is limited.

The ongoing success of the Zen Alarm Clock as a distinctive decorative accessory, reflecting a vaguely "New Age" aesthetic, positions it somewhere in between the high design of the classic Tiffany Lamp, and a popular culture novelty item, such as the Lava Lamp.^[26]

Criticism

Because of The Zen Alarm Clock's New Age positioning, some reviewers have ridiculed it. In his review of the product in The New York Times, reviewer William L. Hamilton wrote: "It is like a monk losing his temper — om to OM! Now! Tranquil, tenacious — the Dalai Lama as drill sergeant".^[27] Similarly, Dads Magazine referred to the aesthetics of the triangular shaped version of the clock as a "hippie carpenter contraption," but nevertheless praised the way it woke users gently and gradually.^[28] Moreover, despite the ongoing success of The Zen Alarm Clock, the company has also had some failures, such as The Affirmation Station, introduced in 1998, which was designed to wake users with their personal affirmations. However, the product failed to gain consumer acceptance and was discontinued after three years on the market.^[29]

References

External links

• Official website