Unexpected birth of post-it notes
At first, the Post-It Note was a solution without a problem.
Dr. Spencer Silver was a chemist for 3M in 1968 when he was trying to create a strong adhesive for the aerospace industry. Instead, he created a low-tack adhesive that could be applied and removed without leaving residue.
Art Fry, one of Dr. Silver's colleagues, would use scraps of paper to bookmark hymns he was going to sing in church choir. The problem was the notes kept falling out of the book. Dr. Silver saw this and realized his adhesive could keep the bookmarks in place.
The iconic "Canary Yellow" color was the only color of scrap paper they had laying around to make prototypes with. Dr. Silver and Fry found themselves writing messages on the bookmark prototypes and recognized the full potential for them.
They tested them at 3M's headquarters before shipping free samples to other companies. 90% of these companies bought more Post-It Notes. It was a self-advertising product because it stuck out on white documents and walls so well.
A failed experiment turned into a global phenomenon. Sometimes brilliant ideas emerge from unlikely circumstances.
