Funny Products Archives - Page 10 of 11 - I Hate Working In Retail

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49 Products You’ll Never Look At The Same Way Again

1. The first lip balms were based on human ear wax.

2. Ikea products are actually named based on a system. Beds, for example, are named after places in Norway.

3. And it’s been estimated that 1 in 10 European babies is conceived in an Ikea bed.

4. The Quaker Oats man is named Larry.

5. The Cap’n Crunch guy’s full name is Horatio Magellan Crunch (and he isn’t really a captain).

6. Electric vibrators were invented over a decade before the electric iron and vacuum cleaner, because priorities.

7. A chemical originally found in human sperm is used to prevent wrinkles and therefore you can get a facial* with it.

8. The first commercial toilet paper was made from manila-infused hemp sheets, although people preferred to wipe with pages from the Sears catalogue instead.

9. “Skunked” beer isn’t caused by a change in temperature, but by a change in light exposure.

10. One of Sony’s first products was an electronic rice cooker.

11. And one of Sharp’s was a mechanical pencil, from which the brand took its name.

12. Chicken McNuggets come in exactly four shapes and they all have names: bell, bone, ball, and boot.

13. For a limited time, Canadian McDonalds are selling something called the McLobster.

14. Lysol used to be marketed as a feminine hygiene product.

15. And Kotex was originally manufactured as bandage material during World War I.

16. Amazon’s logo features an arrow pointing from A to Z to show that it sells everything from A to Z.

17. The best-selling products at Wal-Mart are bananas.

18. Clairol once manufactured a “Touch of Yogurt” shampoo.

19. And Colgate attempted to sell the world on “kitchen entrees.”

20. Pepsi A.M. was a valiant stab at creating a breakfast soda that never took off.

21. Pepsi was originally called “Brad’s Drink” after its founder, Caleb Bradham.

22. Wrigley’s Chewing Gum was the first product to feature a supermarket barcode, in 1974.

23. Texas Pete hot sauce is made in North Carolina.

24. Because it’s so processed, American cheese can’t actually be marketed as “cheese” and instead has to go by “cheese product” and the like.

25. Oreos don’t contain any dairy and are actually vegan.

26. Since white strips wouldn’t be invented for another two thousand years or so, ancient Romans used urine as a teeth-whitening agent.

27. WD40 is called that because it took the company 40 attempts to get the formulation (which stands for “Water Displacement”) right.

28. The inventor of Vaseline claimed to have eaten a spoonful of it every day.

29. Pam cooking spray is thought to be an acronym for “Product of Arthur Meyerhoff,” who was one of its inventors.

30. Q-Tips were originally called “Baby Gays.”

31. The formula for Silly Putty was originally concocted to provide synthetic rubber to the military.

32. Nutella was popularized during World War II because chocolate supplies were extremely limited due to rationing, and so the brand’s founder used hazelnut paste to make the supply last.

33. Cheerios were originally called Cheerioats.

34. Play-Doh began its life as wallpaper cleaner.

35. The man who invented the Pringles can was cremated and buried in one.

36. Nike shoes were first conceived on a waffle iron.

37. The first Apple logo featured Sir Isaac Newton.

38. The glue on the back of postage stamps (British ones, at least) contains 5.9 calories.

39. Barbie’s real name is Barbara Millicent Roberts.

40. Mattel briefly released Growing Up Skipper, a doll that grew breasts when you twisted its arm. The tagline was “She’s two dolls in one for twice as much fun!

41. Pizza Hut perfume is real.

42. Can openers weren’t invented until about 50 years after the invention of canned food, making them incredibly difficult to open in the meantime.

43. All of the letters in the word “typewriter” can be found on the same row on a QWERTY keyboard. (Same with “Alaska.”)

44. Mayonnaise can be used to suffocate head lice.

45. Pez dispensers were originally designed to look like cigarette lighters and marketed to encourage people to quit smoking.

46. Rogaine was originally meant to treat high blood pressure, before people noticed that its side effect was hair growth in men.

47. Starbucks’ Trenta-size cup is larger than the average adult human stomach.

48. And the coffee company is named for a character in Moby-Dick (although it was almost named “Pequod” after the whaling ship in the book).

49. Magnums have the same length and base circumference as regular condoms.

Sourced From Buzzfeed.Com

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10 Even Crazier Vending Machines from around the world

Live Crab Vending Machine

Live Crab Vending Machine
Located in the Xinjiekou subway station, in Nanjing, China, this particular vending machine is full of live hairy crabs and crab vinegar, making it available to enjoy seafood on the go. When it was first installed, people would stop and stare at the crustaceans inside, and others would even take out their cameras and take photos of them. Business was out to a slow start, with only one hairy crab sold per day, but as people got used to the thought of buying live crabs from a vending machine, the figures jumped to an impressive 200 crabs a day. People noticed they were cheaper than the crabs found at the local food markets, and buying them on their daily commute they also saved precious time.
Depending on size, crabs can be bought for as little as 15 yuan (two dollars). They all seem dead, but their actually just hibernating due to the low temperature in the vending machine.

Sex Toy Vending Machine

Sex Toy Vending Machine
Sex toy vending machine in Gyeongju Love Motel
(Link)

Bike Vending Machine

Bike Vending Machine
The Bike Dispenser first came out in 2005 in Eindhoven, Netherlands. It’s actually a renting machine – users have to return the bike to the nearest dispenser at their destination. The bikes are equipped with RFID tags that allows the company to track the bikes, in case people forget that they left their rented bike at home. We do that sometimes.
(Link)

Gold Vending Machine

Gold Vending Machine
Feel the need to buy gold but don’t want to drive all the way to the bank or to your broker? Just use this handy dandy gold vending machine, from “GOLD To Go”. The first one was installed earlier this year at the Emirates Palace Hotel inAbu Dhabi.
The vending machine is an unmanned point of sale. You can purchase gold bars and coins of assured quality, backed by the security of a Swabian Fort Knox and with the ease-of-use of a vending machine. Prices are updated in real-time. The GOLD to go gold vending machine is largely burglar-proof and tamper-resistant. It has an excellent user guidance, which makes it very easy to handle.
(Link)

(Medical) Marijuana Vending Machine

(Medical) Marijuana Vending Machine
The city that popularized the fast food drive-thru has a new innovation: 24-hour medical marijuana vending machines. Patients suffering from chronic pain, loss of appetite and other ailments that marijuana is said to alleviate can get their pot with a dose of convenience at the Herbal Nutrition Center, where a large machine will dole out the drug around the clock. “Convenient access, lower prices, safety, anonymity,” said inventor and owner Vincent Mehdizadeh, extolling the benefits of the machine.
(Link)

Anger Release Vending Machine

Anger Release Vending Machine
‘Passive Aggressive Anger Release Machine’ is an interactive sculpture by Yarisal and Kublitz. Experience the most satisfying feeling when a piece of China breaks into million pieces. All you have to do is insert a coin, and a piece of China will Slowly move forwards and fall into the bottom of the machine, breaking, and leaving you happy and relieved of anger.
(Link)

Baguette Vending Machine

Baguette Vending Machine
Few things in France are treated with the reverence and respect of bread in general and the baguette, the long wand of dough made from a recipe defined in French law, in particular. But now one entrepreneurial baker has come up with an idea that sounds as sacrilegious as putting Dom Pérignon in wine boxes: selling baguettes in a vending machine. Jean-Louis Hecht has taken advantage of the August holiday period, when many of France’s 33,000 boulangers shut up shop, to install Paris’s first 24-hour automated baguette dispenser.
So far Hecht has only installed two machines, one next to his baker’s shop in Paris’s 19th arrondissement and a second in the north-eastern town of Hombourg-Haut, close to the German border, where he also has a shop. The baguettes are partially cooked before they are put in the machine, then finished off when ordered and delivered crisp and steaming for $1.40 each.
(Link | Via)

Wedding Vending Machine

Wedding Vending Machine
AutoWed is a novelty wedding machine offering a quick hitch, a couple of rings and a personalized certificate for just $1. Audio prompts, specially produced music, a bespoke retro keyboard and VFD display, ring vending and ticket printer all wrapped up in a Cadillac-pink cabinet with shiny aluminum fittings.
(Link)

Flat Shoe Vending Machine

Flat Shoe Vending Machine
A great night out grooving on the dance floor can result in sore soles and a throbbing tumble out the door. Two British companies are capitalizing on clubgoers’ end-of-night anguish by installing shoe vending machines full of cheap flats. Each pair is dispensed with a matching bag so women can tote their tortuous footwear home.
(Link)

Smart Car Vending Machine

Smart Car Vending Machine
We’ve seen plenty of interesting vending machines all over Japan, even for outright marketing, though the Smart Vendor in Shibuya Station might just take the creativity award home. Holding a full-size Smart Car, the faux vending machine has two choices (coupe and cabrio), and a convenient slot to insert the amount you need (about $20k). Of course, this is a concept only, but is a nice extension of their already creative vending machine idea that fits right into the Japanese love for instant gratification on-the-go. Besides, could you do this with any other car without it seeming like a big joke?

 

Sourced from Oddee.com

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By

10 New Weird Vending Machines

Vending machines – they’re not just for snacks anymore. Check out these 10 unique machines that dispense everything from fresh salads to crack pipes.

1 Salad Vending Machine

Forget junk food or candy bars – this vending machine sells only fresh salads.

When 27-year-old Luke Saunders told his former boss he was turning down a substantial raise and promotion to create a vending machine that would sell exclusively organic, restaurant-quality salads and snacks, he was met with looks of disbelief and confusion.

Despite the skepticism, Saunders unveiled the first of what he expects to be many of his unusual kiosks in an otherwise dreary food court in downtown Chicago.

Made from reclaimed wood and surrounded by real plants with a carpet of artificial turf surrounding it, the machine is stocked at 10 a.m. every day with an array of fresh salads and snacks consisting mainly of organic, locally grown produce and assembled at a nearby kitchen just hours before. Whatever is left at the end of each day is donated to a local food pantry.
(Source)

2 Crack Pipe Vending Machine

 

 

The first-ever crack pipe vending machine has debuted in Canada — and it surprisingly isn’t in Toronto. A Canadian nonprofit organization installed the controversial vending machines in Vancouver as part of a plan to curb the spread of HIV and hepatitis among drug users.

Each machine holds 200 pipes and is restocked every five days. The pipes are sold for 25 cents.

Crack pipes, which are often made by users from glass tubes purchased from DIY stores, frequently have splintered glass, which can cause cuts and sores and spread infections like HIV. (Source)

3 Amazon Kindle Vending Machine

 

 
Amazon is reportedly experimenting with automatic “Kindle Kiosk” vending machines at various locations in the United States. The machines sell everything from the $379 Kindle Fire HDX to a $20 Kindle PowerFast adapter, as well as Kindle e-readers and covers.

An Amazon spokesperson confirmed that the kiosks have been rolling out since November 2013, and are installed at a variety of locations, including event spaces, shopping centers and airports. (Source)

4 Bra Vending Machine

 

 

 Over the years, Japan has seen an array of interesting and unusual vending machines. Recently, a vending machine dispensing bras debuted in Tokyo.

In 2013, Japanese lingerie maker Wacoal rolled out a bra vending machine at its Une Nana Cool branded specialty shop in Shibuya. The vending machine is packed with the company’s wireless “Fun Fun Week” bras.

To help you choose, there’s a size chart on the machine. Bras are priced at 2,940 yen, or about $30. (Source | Via)

5 Swapping Vending Machine

 

 

We’re used to putting money in a vending machine and instantly receiving consumable goods—a bag of chips, a soda, or even a new pair of headphones—in return, but what if vending machines became a fresh way to reuse, recycle, and trade with people in your community? That’s the idea behind Swap-O-Matic, a New York City-based vending machine project that wants to “shift culture away from an emphasis on unconscious consumption,” by encouraging people to donate and receive used items for free.

To use the Swap-O-Matic, you register with an email address using the machine’s touchscreen interface. New traders start out with three swapping “credits.” Donating an item earns additional credits, which can be redeemed for anything else in the machine. The Swap-O-Matic operates on an honor system—no one is monitoring whether you’re actually putting a pair of earrings into the machine in order to get the cool Star Wars action figure your neighbor donated. However, a “flag system” prevents misuse. (Source)

6 Recycled Book Vending Machine

 

 

A Barrie woman has come up with a unique way to let people on the go enjoy a good read – over and over. Her concept may have you re-thinking what you throw away.
Dana Clarke, the creator of the recycled book machine explains how it’s used: “When you decide what book you want, you put the toonie in, rotate it, and out comes the book.”

This is a green book vending machine – it’s the color of a granny smith apple, and an environmentally-friendly way to read. For $2, you can pick out a used book and donate one when you’re done. Part of the proceeds will go to literacy programs and building schools in Africa.

Clarke plans to start a crowd-funding campaign to raise money to get these machines in train stations, bus terminals, and hospitals across Canada. (Source)

7 Burrito Vending Machine

 

 

A Mobil station in West Hollywood, CA is now the home of the world’s first Burritobox, a bright orange vending machine that delivers warm burritos in 60 seconds.

You can’t exactly customize your burrito, but you can choose from five varieties, including shredded beef and cheese, roasted potato, egg and cheese, and chorizo, sausage, egg and cheese.

Each burrito costs $3, excluding tax and additional toppings. A side of sour cream costs an extra 50 cents while Tabasco sauce is 65 cents. Guacamole is also available for 75 cents. (Source)

8 Art Vending Machine

 

 

Back in 1997, North Carolina artist Clark Whittington began converting retired cigarette vending machines into the Art-O-Mat, which dispenses original works of art. Each machine is beautifully customized (often in a retro design) and carries art from one of their many contributing artists.

There are about 100 Art-O-Mat machines across the country, vending cigarette-pack-size fine art from locations as diverse as the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York and a Whole Foods Market in Houston. (Source 1 | Source 2)

9 Bike Helmet Vending Machine

 

 

Boston’s popular Hubway bicycle sharing program just got a lot safer for out-of-towners. The new HelmetHub allows users to rent or purchase helmets in the country’s first helmet vending machine.

Located by the bike sharing station near Boylston Street and Mass. Ave., the HelmetHub holds over 30 helmets. The goal? Encourage all users, whether daily commuters or one-time visitors, to ride safely. This helmet machine is one of 14 set to arrive in the city as part of a pilot program. (Source)

10 Lego Vending Machine

 

 

This Lego vending machine on a Munich train platform might be the best way to keep your kids entertained. Ideally placed for frustrated parents trying to keep their children calm on a long journey, this machine dispenses a wide range of Lego toys. (Source)

Courtesy of ODDEE.com Click here for more. 

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