By TAMLYN STEWART
For anyone working in cramped, makeshift offices in post-quake Christchurch, it is not hard to be won over by the idea of a super-small, ergonomically designed, wireless mouse.
If you are crammed into a portable office with colleagues, seated so close together your neighbour smashes their desk drawer into your knee whenever they reach for their coffee plunger/lunch/stapler, anything that gives you a little more elbow room sounds like a good idea.
Straight to the point ... Grant Odgers and his Swiftpoint wireless mouse for laptops which is winning fans around the world.
Local Christchurch tech company Swiftpoint founder Grant Odgers didn't need an earthquake to figure that out. He came up with the idea eight years ago.
Odgers says the idea was born out of frustration. He didn't like the touchpad on his laptop, and came up with the idea of a `laptop mouse' that can be gripped between finger and thumb, and operate on top of the touchpad of a laptop or alongside it.
"I'm not a big fan of the touch pad. I prefer to use the mouse. I really wanted to be able to bring it to market."
If it would help him, it would help other people, he said.
The software engineer raised capital from family and friends, and venture capital company Endeavour Capital, to form the business and develop his idea.
It was a fairly lengthy gestation period from idea to retail, but the device finally went on sale 18 months ago.
Manufactured in Thailand, "tens of thousands" of the device have now been sold.
This month United States magazine Entrepreneur listed the Swiftpoint Mouse, which retails for $US69, as one of the "10 Must-Haves for Road Warriors", describing it as "the best mobile mouse available, period".
It was in good company on the list, alongside the iPad 2 and the ultra-light, super-thin Acer Aspire S3 laptop.
The tiny mouse even crept into the goodie bags of the nominees at the Academy Awards.
Would Odgers ever consider selling the business? Yes, for the right price.
Swiftpoint, previously called Simtrix, has four employees but relies extensively on consultants.
Its competitors include heavyweights like Microsoft and Logitech.
Odgers admitted that had been a daunting prospect, but said there was an advantage in being a small, nimble company.
"These guys do small evolutionary steps ... they don't tend to go out on a limb."
The company's focus this year is a partnership with a larger brand – Odgers can't say who at this stage – which will enable it to get into a lot more channels, as currently the company has to negotiate distribution terms with each individual retailer.
It is available in local retail chains including Noel Leeming, but has recently secured an agreement with US retail heavyweight Costco, a major success for the small Christchurch business.
Swiftpoint is now well into development of `Version 2' of the device. Odgers would not reveal details of the product, but said the new version brings `iPad like' touch gesture capabilities to the mouse.
The February 22 earthquake in Christchurch prompted Odgers and his colleagues to leave their local offices and work from their respective homes. It has sales team members based in the United States and Skype has become the new boardroom.
There is value in meeting someone face to face, so they make sure they still do that regularly, but there was a lot that could be done remotely through technology, Odgers said. Also there were less overheads, which was "quite nice".
Stuff.co.nz