Walt Himelstein

Starting in 2020 Walt launched ShatterSafe Reusable Coated Glass Bottle, a reusable exterior coated glass bottle technology company. The glass is coated with a permanent BPA/Phthalate-free coating applied to the exterior of the glass, the coating is 100% dishwasher safe. The coating makes the glass harder to break and if it does break it does not make a mess of sharp glass shards.

Walt became an Environmental Chemistry/Scientist after 6 years of college chemistry. He has worked for 25 years as an Environmental Chemist. The last 8 years of his Environmental Chemistry career was for General Physics Corporation-GPC (NYSE:GPX) with his last 5 years at GPC as Vice President of the Environmental Laboratory Division, managing over 70 employees. In 2012 he started a (now bygone) reusable glass water bottle company. Google; NY Times PURE Glass Bottle, to read about the previous reusable glass bottle company, no longer in business. The partner/distributor mentioned in an article recently released him after 10 years of doing nothing with the technology.

After years of coating different types of glass bottles with various coatings, Walt has now come up with a clearer permanent exterior coating for glass bottles that is dishwasher safe and prevents glass shard mess should the glass break. It is more cost-effective than the previous glass bottle coating and better quality. The ShatterSafe coated glass bottle holds all types of liquids safely including fruit juice, pressurized carbonated soda, protein shakes, basically anything you can drink on the go tastes better in reusable ShatterSafe coated glass bottles.

Walt says, future ShatterSafe coated Glass products include; Color coated bottles, Double wall bottles, Carbonization soda bottles, Protein shaker bottles, Blender bottles, food jars, and many others. He is looking for a partner/investors/CEO/owner who can take charge of the company and help take this disruptive technology to market and make this an epic reusable glass bottle company.

Where did the idea for the ShatterSafe Reusable Coated Glass Bottle come from?

I have over 25 years as an Environmental Chemist. We would receive chemicals in glass jars to use in testing of soil and water in the lab. To ensure the safety of the chemicals and people handling the chemicals should the glass bottles break in the lab, the exterior of the glass bottle was coated with a clear permanent plastic coating. I have always been interested in the environment and health, as I saw more plastic and metal reusable bottles being launched in the market place I wondered why glass wasn’t being used as a reusable drink container since glass is the drinking material people like and want more than plastic or metal. What I discover was, people were afraid to take glass outside their homes for fear of the mess and danger the glass would make if it broke in a public place. That led me to create ShatterSafe Glass bottle, a reusable glass bottles that can have designs printed on the glass then a clear (or color) coating applied so the contents of the bottle can be seen without the use of a complete covering of the glass. I made ShatterSafe coating 100% dishwasher safe, BPA and Phthalate free and permanently on the glass.

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

I wear many hats in my occupation(s). I am currently looking for a partner/co-owner who can help me take this product and make it the disruptive technology I know it is. It is not just for reusable glass water bottles, it can also coat protein shaker glass bottles made from glass, double wall coffee travel mugs, beer growlers, and many many other items. So I currently spend part of my day looking for a partner/co-owner who can take control of the technology and grow it into a multi-million dollar company. I am looking for an Owner/Partner/CEO who sees the vision that people want to drink from glass and now with ShatterSafe any product made from plastic or metal can be made from glass for safe on-the-go use.

How do you bring ideas to life?

I am always looking at different products and thinking there can be a better way to approach them. I then draw the design in my notebook. Refine the design and start looking for production options.

What’s one trend that excites you?

The move to reusable and recyclable products and away from single-use items. People are starting to understand that you can continue to keep your lifestyle level and actually improve it by making simple changes such as using products that have more than a one-time use. You can also improve your health by moving away from some disposable items.

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

Stick to an idea but continue to modify as more knowledge is gained.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Go it alone if you can and if you can’t think carefully about who you want to help and make sure they are the right partner/fit.

Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.

I believe some plastic use food items will be seen as the “lead drinking containers of the Roman Empire” (lead slowly poisoned people in ancient Rome). Plastic is a great product but has now become used as a food container for way too many purposes. Studies have shown that people ingest over a credit card’s plastic every week. Other studies have shown that endocrine disruptors are found in many everyday products, including some plastic bottles and containers and liners of metal food cans.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

Continue trying to correct my problems and errors even if others don’t think it’s important. You can’t be perfect but if you know a business problem exists and don’t correct it immediately it will only become more of a problem and the “force” to correct it becomes exponential as time goes on.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

Have a knowledge base that is second to none. Study a marketplace and a product so you understand how it fits in the market. That not only applies to my current product ShatterSafe Glass, but it applied to my time as Vice President of General Physics Laboratory. Understand the marketplace and what the client is looking for that will always produce success.

What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?

After creating my first coated glass water bottle company (2012) I teamed up with a distributor/partner that had me under contract for almost 10 years and did nothing with the technology. He approached some large chain stores about the product and when they expressed no interest he didn’t pursue other options. He recently released me from that agreement.
I am now looking for a new owner/partner/CEO who can take charge of the company with me as (co) Owner but really a technical advisor who is 100% involved in the business. They would run the day-to-day operations of marketing and sales and be able to find venture capital or use their own funds for day-to-day operations and production.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

A photo book called American Inner City or War Zone. It would have similar pictures across from each other in the book, buildings falling down and you need to guess is an American Inner City or a War Zone. People in a food line, American Inner City or War Zone.

Sometimes you need to hold a mirror up to see what is right in front of your face.

What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?

I donated (more than) $100 to the Maryland Food Bank and felt that it was money well spent. The disparity between people in need based on income, economic and educational opportunities is appalling. If you can’t get enough to eat you can never have the ability to look beyond that and grow yourself into a better situation.

What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?

WhatsApp, I use it to talk and face time with people all over the country and world.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

I don’t read many books, I get magazines (in paper) like Wired, Forbes, Entertainment Weekly, Men’s Journal, and others. I like reading current articles about business and other topics that interest me.

What is your favorite quote?

Do or do not, there is no try.

Key Learnings:

-Realize you have a particular skill set no one can be good at everything. Look to hire or team with people that have a different knowledge base.

-Find a product/service and figure out how to improve that item. People are always looking for a “better mouse trap” if it fixes a problem or is better/easier for them it will succeed.

-The secret of success is to build on a small success and grow from there into your dream for your company.