What Davison does

Davison is a privately held, family-owned invention development company founded in 1989 by George Davison and headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with a secondary regional office opened in Venice, Florida in 2013. The company helps everyday inventors — including teachers, truck drivers, healthcare workers, parents and first-time entrepreneurs — move from a raw idea to a market-ready product through a proprietary 9-step structured methodology ("A Better Way to Invent") that covers concept design, research, prototyping, packaging, manufacturing considerations and licensing preparation. Idea confidentiality is protected through two legally binding instruments: a perpetual Ethics and Confidentiality Agreement (ECA) signed by all employees, and an Idea Security Agreement (ISA) that prevents Davison from selling, developing or licensing an inventor's idea without written consent.

The company's core physical asset is Inventionland, described as America's largest invention factory, a creative-design facility that has been featured on CBS, the History Channel and the Science Channel. Davison operates a two-sided business: on one side it acquires individual inventors (primarily through inbound marketing, free information packets, free confidential consultations and an SMS/email funnel) and charges professional-services fees for the development engagement; on the other side it licenses the resulting inventions to corporations (including Love Cooking Company and Hugs Pet Products) and earns licensing royalties when those products reach retail. End products have reportedly been sold in 1,200+ retail and online stores including Target, Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond, The Home Depot, Petco, Amazon and QVC.

Davison also produces the 'Dare to Invent' television show, publishes an active blog dating back to 2006, and operates public factory tours as part of a long-running brand-building engine anchored by founder George Davison's media profile. The company is self-funded with no disclosed institutional investors, no funding rounds, no parent company and no subsidiaries, and operates across consumer products, industrial products, mobile apps and packaging categories.

Name

Davison

Legal name

Davison

Website

https://davison.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Davison is a privately held, family-owned invention development company founded in 1989 in Pittsburgh, PA. It guides everyday inventors through a proprietary 9-step process from idea to product, licensing the resulting inventions to corporations and earning service fees plus royalties.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Invention Development Services

NAICS

Industrial Design Services (541420), Industrial Design Services (54142)

SIC

Special Industry Machinery (No Metalworking Machinery) (3550)

akta.pro primary industry

Makerspaces & Fab Labs (Open Build Studios) (EDAMADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Makerspace, Innovation Lab & Fab Lab Operations (Tools, Safety, Programming) (EDAEAGAI), 3D Printing, CAD & Digital Fabrication Programs (EDAMADAH)

Keywords

• Invention development services
• Product design services
• Prototype development
• Consumer product licensing
• Idea-to-product consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Pittsburgh

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Invention development services for inventors: Davison provides structured invention development services to everyday inventors, guiding their ideas through a 9-step process from concept to potential licensing. Revenue is generated through service fees associated with the invention development engagement, with inventors paying for access to Davison's expertise, process, and corporate licensing network.
2. Licensing representation and corporate invention services: Davison works with corporations to develop new products, earning fees and licensing royalties by matching corporate product needs with inventor ideas. Corporations pay for access to Davison's inventor pipeline and invention development capabilities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Davison is a product design and invention development company that helps everyday inventors take ideas from concept through research, prototyping, packaging, and licensing into retail. The company runs a proprietary 9-step inventing method and operates America's largest in-house invention factory (Inventionland) in Pittsburgh, serving both individual inventors and corporations seeking new product pipelines.

Product overview

Davison is an invention development company that operates a family-owned business established in 1989, helping everyday inventors transform ideas into real products. The company's core offering is its proprietary 9-Step Inventing Method, a structured methodology guiding inventors from idea submission through product licensing and retail distribution. Davison operates America's largest Invention Factory facility in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where client inventions are developed, prototyped, and designed. The company offers services for both individual inventors and corporations, including idea protection (Ethics and Confidentiality Agreements, Idea Security Agreements), patent guidance, and licensing representation. Client inventions span multiple categories including consumer products, industrial products, mobile apps, and packaging solutions, with products distributed through over 1,200 retail and online stores including Amazon, Target, Walmart, and Home Depot. Notable client inventions include the Twister Caps and Bolts, Meatball Baker, Can Pump and Pour, Bikeboard, and various household items. Davison also produces the Dare to Invent® TV show and offers factory tours of their creative-design facility.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Inventionland: Davison's creative-design facility in Pittsburgh, often compared to Willy Wonka's factory, where client invention ideas come to life. Featured on television shows including CBS Early Show, History Channel, and Science Channel.

Products and services

• 9-Step Inventing Method (A Better Way to Invent) Davison's proprietary structured methodology for guiding inventors through the entire product development journey, from initial idea through licensing and retail distribution. The 9-step process provides education, guidance, and structured invention services designed to help inventors make informed decisions about bringing their ideas to market.
• Inventor Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1,200 retail stores have carried Davison client products
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• TargetcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTarget is a key retail distribution channel for Davison client inventions. Davison celebrated hitting the milestone of 1,000 retail stores in October 2011, with Target listed among the major retailers carrying Davison-designed products. The partnership enables Davison's inventor clients to reach millions of consumers through a nationally recognized retailer.
• Bed Bath & BeyondcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBed Bath & Beyond is a primary retail channel for Davison client inventions across housewares and home product categories. The retailer was among the milestone 1,000 stores reached in 2011 and the 1,300 stores reached in 2013.
• The Home DepotcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHome Depot serves as a key retail channel for Davison client industrial and home improvement products. Listed as a flagship retail partner from the company's early milestones.
• WalmartcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWalmart is a major retail distribution partner for Davison client inventions, providing access to one of the largest retail footprints in the United States. Listed as a key retailer in multiple company milestones.
• AmazoncoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAmazon serves as an online retail channel for Davison client inventions, enabling Davison's inventor clients to reach consumers nationally and globally through e-commerce.
• PetcocoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPetco is a retail partner specifically for Davison pet product inventions. Hugs Pet Products, a licensee of Davison, has placed multiple innovative pet products in Petco stores.
• QVCcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorQVC is a television and online shopping channel that has featured multiple Davison client products including the Bacon Baker, Mega Bacon Pan, and Paula Deen product line on the 'In the Kitchen with David' program. This partnership provides direct-to-consumer television exposure and sales for Davison inventors.
• Love Cooking CompanycoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerLove Cooking Company has licensed multiple Davison client inventions including the Meatball Baker, Bacon Baker, Mega Bacon Pan, and a unique hot doghamburger baking pan under Chef Tony Notaro's line of healthy cooking bakeware. Products are available at major retailers and on QVC.
• Hugs Pet ProductsminorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerHugs Pet Products has licensed several Davison pet product innovations and collaborated with Paula Deen to create dog food products featuring Paula Deen. The partnership has produced multiple successful pet product lines sold through retailers including Petco.
• Paula DeenminorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerPaula Deen partnered with Davison and Hugs Pet Products to create a line of pet food products and household organizational products including the Gift Wrap Organizer and Ornament Storage Box, sold through retail channels.
• Thor TrucksminorOthersThor Trucks, an electric truck startup, was featured in Davison's community news as an innovation story. The company claimed it could beat the Tesla Semi to market with its ET-One electric truck.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Quirky: Quirky was an invention-to-market platform that crowdsourced ideas and partnered with major retailers (e.g., Bed Bath & Beyond). Although now operating differently, it represents the broader crowdsourced invention development space in which Davison competes.
• IDEO: IDEO is a global design and innovation consultancy providing product design, prototyping, and corporate innovation services — overlapping with Davison's corporate invention services and 9-step method, though at enterprise scale and price points.
• frog (frog design): frog is a global product design and innovation firm serving enterprises with industrial design and product development — comparable to Davison's corporate services and 9-step structured methodology, scaled to Fortune 500 engagements.

Others

• IngenuityFDI: IngenuityFDI is a product design and development consultancy providing industrial design and prototyping services — adjacent to Davison's core service lines for both inventors and corporate clients.

Emerging players

• SmartUp: SmartUp is an innovation platform connecting inventors and entrepreneurs to corporate R&D needs, conceptually similar to Davison's two-sided marketplace model between inventors and corporations.
• Bresslergroup: Bresslergroup is an integrated product design and development consultancy offering industrial design, engineering, and prototyping — closely comparable to Davison's corporate invention development work and factory-based prototyping.

Direct peers

• GIA (Global Invention Advisors): GIA is an invention services firm offering product development, prototyping, and licensing representation to independent inventors — a direct comparable in the invention services category.
• IDEA Pros: IDEA Pros is an invention services company that helps independent inventors with patent referrals, prototyping, 3D modeling, and licensing — a closely comparable offering to Davison's inventor-side services.
• InventHelp: InventHelp is the largest US invention submission and development services company, offering a comparable funnel-based model targeting everyday inventors with idea submission, development, and licensing representation services.
• Edison Nation: Edison Nation is an invention services and licensing platform that accepts ideas from independent inventors and seeks to license them to manufacturers — directly overlapping Davison's two-sided inventor-to-corporation model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Davison
• Facebookfacebook.com/DavisonInvent
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/davison
• Instagraminstagram.com/davison_invent

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Davison