7 – Window & Door Industry – Inventor of FlexScreen® – Joe Altieri

Joe Altieri is the inventor of FlexScreen, a revolutionary product in the window and home industry. FlexScreen is easy to use, clean, and store. It can be installed and removed with minimum effort. Another great feature of the flexible window screen is that it’s undetected so that homeowners can enjoy their window view. Like many other successful garage inventors, Joe started working on his prototype in his garage. There were many sleepless nights in Joe’s early stages of inventing FlexScreen, but he was determined to find a suitable material that would stick to the mesh portion of the window screen. He was so eager to discover a solution that he would forget to eat, and his wife would have to bring food to the garage. Although Joe had the support of his wife, the window and door industry was resistant to the innovative change that the FlexScreen brought to the market. Joe started to market to homeowners and then manufacturers began to take an interest in FlexScreen. This approach allowed Joe to gain success with his product. After overcoming challenges, Joe Altieri made an appearance on the ABC hit show Shark Tank. After pitching FlexScreen to the sharks, he was able to strike a deal with Lori Greiner, “The Queen of QVC.” Since the show, FlexScreen generated 5 million in sales and expanded distribution to five manufacturers in the U.S. and Canada. Joe’s advice to other inventors is to keep it simple and understand that it will take delayed gratification to reach success.