Squeeze and roll. Seems simple enough, doesn’t it? For Paul Kind, this isn’t exactly true. He is the inventor of the rim roller, a device specifically used for rolling up the rim on coffee cups.
“Paul is a problem solver,” said his wife Iona. “We would go to [Tim Horton’s] every Tuesday and struggle to roll up our rims. The first thing in his mind was that there has to be a better way. He was trying to make a living and in his spare time he would put his mind to that, physically making 12 different prototypes. It went on and on for 3 years; it’s been a long process to make it the right size and shape. I’m really hoping this works well for him because he’s worked hard for so many years.”
To some, the idea of having a device to roll up the rim for you seemed a little bit ridiculous. When asked if he would be buying a rim roller, third-year theatre and film studies student Tyler Shearer replied, “Absolutely not. Why do I have to pay for a product when I can just use my thumbs?”
Other students, such as fourth-year sociology student Jenn Mosselman and third-year English student Heather Cairnie, said that they might purchase one as a stocking stuffer or a gag gift. Mosselman added that it was “hilariously intelligent that they’re making money off of a contest that people love. But it just goes to show you that our society isn’t about need, it’s about want.”
Read: Looking at the coffee grind
