The Mirror Has Two Vases

Few promotional products have roots in international design, but the newly launched Flexi-Vase from Bridgeport, Connecticut-based supplier Prime Resources Corp. (UPIC: PRIME) appears to have a lot in common with some much-talked-about vases created by Japanese design firm D-BROS.

The flat-pack, vinyl vases are making waves in Japan, where land area is in short supply and in-home storage space is even scarcer, and are selling out stateside at Unison Home, an online boutique dedicated to all things designer.

Likewise, in the promotional products industry, the vases are top sellers and have earned best new product accolades at almost every show in which they’ve been featured.

“It’s the most exciting new product we’ve put out in a long time,” says Paula Shulman, vice president of sales and marketing for Prime Resources.

Shulman says the Prime Resources team first discovered the vases at a tradeshow in China, but when it came time to determine which new products the company would debut in 2010, the Prime Resources team was split.

“Bob Lederer and I saw it and said we have to do it,” Shulman recalls. “The rest of the team wasn’t as excited about the vases as we were, but we ended up being right.”

The greatest thing about the vases, Shulman says, is that they inspire creativity. “They’re not just for flowers, they also hold candy, make great centerpieces—they even work for goldfish.”