Meet the woman who sources gear for the world's wackiest gadget catalog
If you’re a frequent air traveler, you’ve surely seen the SkyMall catalog tucked in the pocket of the seat in front of you. It’s stuffed with zombie statues, bug vacuums, telekinetic obstacle courses and more, all delivered in an unflappable, straight-faced style that defies the sheer weirdness of the gear inside.
Some people see SkyMall and ask, “Who buys this stuff?!” When we read SkyMall, we think, “Who finds this stuff?!” Well, her name is Barb Downey. She’s Director of Merchandising at SkyMall, and manages the ongoing hunt for the catalog’s latest, greatest products.
Barb Downey keeps a special place in her heart for the Bigfoot Garden Yeti, but says the voice-activated R2D2 is one of SkyMall's oldest and best-selling items.
MAXIMUM TECH: What do you do when you’re on a flight and see someone grabbing the SkyMall in front of them?
BARB DOWNEY: What most of us do is observe first—what catches their attention? You don’t want to tell them too much. You want to watch them. I want to see what they’re stopping on. I will talk to people, but I want to observe first.
MT: Describe typical comments you’ve heard from strangers on a plane.
BD: People will look at something and say, “Do people really buy this?” and I’ll laugh to myself, because I know how much they buy this. It wouldn’t be in the catalog if they didn’t.
Based in Phoenix, AZ, SkyMall doesn’t actually stock and ship out catalog items. Instead, it connects consumers with third-party retailers. Still, this on-site display case reminds employees of all the cool connections they make.
MT: Does a product have to fulfill certain criteria in order to be considered catalog-worthy? Our editors can look at the catalog and say, “That’s very SkyMall.”
BD: We don’t have anything written in stone, but we all pretty much know what products will work. We look for unique items that you can’t find in mass-market merchants like Kmart and Target. Remember, we’re a retailer with a unique position. Our customers are strapped in an airplane seat, so the product copy can be more exacting, specific, detail-oriented. Customers aren’t standing with our catalog above the recycling bin. They pick it up on the plane, and look long and hard.
MT: Do you purposefully look for a certain amount of kitsch factor?
BD: Sure, that comes with it. But there’s always a common thread underneath of having a unique purpose or a solution. It’s a product they can’t find in other places. It solves an issue that customers didn’t know they had, or didn’t know there would be a solution for.
The Roll-Up Electric Piano makes us pine for rollable OLED displays.
MT: So let’s throw some products at you, and just give us your first reactions. Let’s start with the day clock.
BD: That’s a great product! I actually put that back in SkyMall six years ago, working directly with that manufacturer. I know it sounds wacky, and a lot of people would say that’s a ridiculous product, but I never did. I loved that product from the beginning, probably because my parents are retired and I know how they live—it’s day by day, not hour by hour.
Don't laugh at the Day Clock. Some people need an occasional reality check.
MT: But it almost seems like it’s a parody of a clock.
BD: But it’s got a real purpose and a real function and, yeah, it’s one of those fun, wacky gifts you get for somebody. If they saw it on their own, it would be, “Why would I ever use this?” But when they start thinking about it, they see it serves a specific purpose.
MT: What about the Telekinetic Obstacle Course? How does that thing even work?
BD: It’s… [laughs, hesitates] I don’t know how it works. I almost bought it for a nephew for Christmas, but his parents wanted us to do something else. But, yeah, that was a huge seller for us. I know what the catalog says about it, but I’ve not seen it in person to try it.
The headband of the Telekinetic Obstacle Course “sends a wireless signal based on your mental commands to the game’s air fan, which increases or decreases its speed, suspending or lowering a foam ball.” Or so says the catalog.
MT: Bigfoot Garden Yeti.
BD: Love that. Love the sales, love the fun, love the media attention.
MT: What do you think is SkyMall’s strangest product?
BD: Oh, my goodness. Maybe the Bug Vacuum. Again, here’s something that solves a problem you may not have known you had, or didn’t know there was a solution for. Everyone has bug issues, but some people won’t take a paper towel and whack it. Our president has this problem—she talks about it all the time.
The Zombie of Montclaire Moors has received 25 product reviews on the SkyMall website for a perfect cumulative score of five stars. But can anyone tell us where to find the Montclaire Moors?
MT: Have you ever seen a SkyMall product and said yourself, “You’ve got to be kidding me”?
BD: Oh, I’m sure I have, but I don’t really think of our products that way. Then again, we do have the Garden Yeti. The Yeti is so popular. Everybody loves the Yeti. Internally, we’ve had a “Dress the Yeti” contest, with each department doing something different.
MT: So SkyMall is definitely not a company that takes itself too seriously.
BD: No, no, no. No—not at all.
If you can't afford a plane ticket, check out SkyMall gear at www.skymall.com.
