Special-Needs Business Profile: Bee Visual

Proprietors:

Michele Walker launched the first product for Bee Visual, LLC in February 2007, although it was in the works for a year before that. Her partner in the business is her husband, Jeff.

Business Description:

"Our business creates visual supports that are affordable, easy to use, and cover behaviors parents/caregivers need help with the most," explains Walker, who has an M.S. in Applied Educational Psychology.

Bee Visual's primary product, the Choiceworks Visual Support System, is made up of a Feelings Board, Schedule Board, Waiting Board, and 40 Visual Magnets to place on them to promote self-control, sequencing, and choice making. The system sells for $79.95 and also includes a storage easel, companion books, and digital timer. The company has also developed a Choiceworks app for iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, available at the iTunes Store for $14.99.

Parenting Connection:

The Walkers have a child with a developmental disability, and drew on that experience when developing the Choiceworks concept. "No matter what we do as a family, we always have to consider how it will affect our child. It is very helpful to have a schedule of events, and pictorial representation reduce anxiety. It's important to have breaks or down time during the day and to avoid large groups, so we plan accordingly. What seems easy for us can be very difficult for kids with developmental differences."

Time Investment:

Being a mom is Walker's first job, she says; Bee Visual "is my other job." The best thing about that other job is "I'm in contact with the top experts in the world." The worst thing: "Marketing.

Unless you have a big marketing budget, it is very hard to tell a lot of people about your product."

Future Plans:

Walker hopes to "expand our current system with additional magnet sets and boards based on customer feedback and look to add more complementary products" in the future.

Professional Advice:

For other parents planning to start a business, Walker advises: "If you truly believe in your idea, go for it! Just understand that the effort will be a lot harder and cost a lot more than you could ever imagine. We have had several people ask us about ideas they had and when they hear how much it costs to get a patent, the conversation seems to end."

More Inspiration and Advice from Michele Walker:

What inspired you to start your business?

Pictures and visual supports helped my child so much I was constantly recommending them to people. The problem was there was no simple product for people to buy. To get the pictures we had to pay $300 for a software program, then we still needed to print and laminate the pictures, stick Velcro tabs to the laminate and then set the pictures up in a structured format that our son could understand. This was just way too cumbersome, impractical and time-consuming. Even our school system struggled with all of this and they would ask us to create the schedules for our son at school. That is when I started making the first prototype.

How did you go about getting it started?

I created a prototype and created another prototype and another and another.... I had a couple of parents try it out to make sure it was viable. I brought the prototype to a nationally known expert and got her blessing. I brought it to hospitals, got their blessings. I submitted the prototype to several publishers and got the interest of several of them. We are now working with Autism Asperger Publishing Company in addition to maintaining our own website and attending trade shows.

What advice would you give to other parents about raising a child with special needs?

You know your child best. Be strong. Advocate. You are you child's number one visual.
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