Hello jsc-ga,
It turns out that ?Moshi? is just one trade name for a pillow made
of lycra or nylon spandex and filled with very small polystyrene beads.
The product is a fairly new one, and is being marketed and sold
under several other names in addition to ?Moshi,? including ?
Mogu? and ?SnoozTime.?
The information I?ve found indicates these pillows are made
exclusively abroad at this time, particularly in Asia, and are not yet
widely handled by wholesalers and distributors in the U.S. The one
exception is Mogu, a Japanese company that takes credit for starting
the fad over these pillows. They have recently expanded their
operations to the US, and the American company?s website is here:
http://www.mogu.com/ Check out the ?history? link for some
fascinating reading on these pillows.
Although I searched the site above, as well as the Japanese site, here:
http://www.ebisukasei.co.jp/english/home.html I could find no Patent
No. or Pat. Pending No. referenced, and a search of both the U.S.
Patent and Trademark database, here: http://www.uspto.gov or the
Japanese Patent Office, here: http://www.ipdl.jpo.go.jp/homepg_e.ipdl
yielded no patents for pillows under this name.
There is, however, a trademark application pending for the name ?
Mogu,? which lists pillows among its products, here:
http://tarr.uspto.gov/servlet/tarr?regser=serial&entry=76480858
as well as listings of issued Japanese trademarks for that name, at
this url: http://www3.ipdl.jpo.go.jp/cgi-bin/ET/ep_index.cgi with
these registration numbers (though the Japanese listings give few
details) 2414027, 2480802, 2482887, 3341586, 4270547, 4297095,
4637976, 4669836, 4711159 and application numbers 2003-092926,
2003-105714, and
In addition, there is also a U.S. trademark application pending for
the name, ?Snooz Time,? here:
http://tarr.uspto.gov/servlet/tarr?regser=serial&entry=78415008 . I
found no U.S. trademark or patent or pending applications under the
name ?Moshi.?
Although I have not been able to locate information that would
indicate this product is patented, do bear in mind that if you have
reason to believe there is such a patent under one or more of these
names, a more exhaustive search, perhaps by a patent attorney, may be
in order. Please understand I can provide only general information
here, which is no substitute for professional legal advice.
However, though Mogu is a manufacturer of these pillows, they are also
a retailer, and as such may not fill your need to find a wholesale
source for the pillows, though initially in 2003 they were the
suppliers of pillows to stores such as Brookstone and Urban Outfitters.
Still, it couldn?t hurt to contact them for information, and you
might be interested in the ?licensing opportunity? they talk about
and provide a link to on their American site.
But should you have no luck with Mogu, there are manufacturers in
China who will sell these pillows to you in quantity, likely under
your own brand name if you would like, as well as made to your
specifications of size, color, etc.
The most dominant company Chinese manufacturer of these pillows is
NEWPORT ASIA LIMITED, and their website is here:
http://www.newportasia.com/ In addition, they are listed in two
trading sites, with some further description and contact/ordering
information:
Alibaba:
http://cmong.trustpass.alibaba.com/10450299/10595286/Cushion/Snowflakes_Square_shape_Cushion.html
TDC Trade Partners:
http://www.tdctradepartners.com/posting/dtl.jsp?id=121487452
One other company consistently turns up as manufacturing these type of
pillows. That is the Chinese company, ZHANGJIAGANG HENGYU KNIT GOODS
MANUFACTURING CO., LTD. Their website is here:
http://www.cn-hengyu.com/main-e.htm and they are also listed on
Alibaba, here:
http://cn-hengyu.en.alibaba.com/product/50009251/50055544/Cushions/Cushions.html
In addition, Alibaba lists two other Chinese companies as
manufacturers of these kinds of pillows, though I was unable to locate
independent web sites for them. But their Alibaba listings give
contact info, as well as a description of their goods:
GUANGSHOU HUANGPU CHUNSHENG TOYS FACTORY:
http://www.alibaba.com/suppliers/manufacturers/noid/yellow008.html
CHAMP BOND INTERNATIONAL, LTD.
http://www.alibaba.com/trade/company/goto/10102067.html
I hope you will find this information helpful. If something isn?t
clear, please do use the ?Request Clarification? feature to ask
before rating and closing your question so I can be sure you?re
happy with what?s provided. Thanks for a fascinating hunt, and I
wish you best of luck in your pillow endeavors.
Regards,
Byrd-ga
Search strategy:
As luck would have it, I am the owner of such a pillow as you describe,
though mine is labeled ?SnoozTime.? I looked at the tag, and saw
it says ?Made in China,? with a little R in a circle, or trademark
symbol on it. It also says what it?s made of, i.e. ?foam
polystyrene beads.? and ?nylon? exterior. So I began my search
with the terms:
[polystyrene nylon pillow manufacturer OR wholesaler OR distributor OR
importer]
[pillow "foam polystyrene beads?]
[china pillow "foam polystyrene beads?]
[china polystyrene pillow]
[china polystyrene pillow manufacturer OR distributor OR importer OR
wholesaler]
["made in china" pillows polystyrene U.S. distributor OR wholesaler OR
importer]
While searching, I discovered that pillows are frequently called ?
cushions? in Asia, and there are other terms for the ?polystyrene
bead? stuffing, such as ?micro beads,? ?powder beads,? ?
polystyrene powder,? and ?snow beads,? so I added those terms to
the search, with and without the ?china? filter.
When finding certain companies referenced in Alibaba and the trade
engines, such as tdctradepartners.com I then searched specifically by
company name to locate their websites and specific information. |
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