George Ballas
Encyclopedia
George Charles Ballas was an American
entrepreneur
. He invented the first string trimmer
, known as the Weed Eater
in 1971. He is the father of ballroom dancer, Corky Ballas
, and grandfather of Mark Ballas
of Dancing with the Stars
.
Ballas got the idea for the trimmer while driving through an automatic car wash, where the rotating brushes gave him an idea. Using a tin can laced with fishing line and an edge trimmer, he tried out his idea, which worked. After some refinements, he shopped it around to several tool makers, who all rejected his invention. He went on to develop the garden tool himself. The first year, sales were over a half million dollars
. By 1976 they were $41 million, and Ballas sold his company the following year to Emerson Electric Company
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
. He invented the first string trimmer
String trimmer
A string trimmer, also known as a strimmer, line trimmer, weed whacker, weed whip, weed eater, weedy, or whipper snipper, is a powered handheld device that uses a flexible monofilament line instead of a blade for cutting grass and other plants near objects...
, known as the Weed Eater
Weed Eater
Weed Eater was a string trimmer company founded in 1971 in Houston, Texas by George C. Ballas, Sr., the inventor of the device.The idea for the Weed Eater trimmer came to him from the spinning nylon bristles of an automatic car wash...
in 1971. He is the father of ballroom dancer, Corky Ballas
Corky Ballas
Mark Alexander "Corky" Ballas, Sr. is a retired competitive ballroom dancer who holds several Latin dance championship titles.He has one son, Mark Ballas, with former wife and partner Shirley Ballas...
, and grandfather of Mark Ballas
Mark Ballas
Mark Alexander Ballas Jr. is an American dancer.Ballas is a professional ballroom dancer on the ABC program Dancing with the Stars. He began competing on the show in the fall of 2007. He was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Choreography in 2011...
of Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars is the name of several international television series based on the format of the British TV series Strictly Come Dancing, which is distributed by BBC Worldwide – the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the format has been licensed to over 35 countries...
.
Ballas got the idea for the trimmer while driving through an automatic car wash, where the rotating brushes gave him an idea. Using a tin can laced with fishing line and an edge trimmer, he tried out his idea, which worked. After some refinements, he shopped it around to several tool makers, who all rejected his invention. He went on to develop the garden tool himself. The first year, sales were over a half million dollars
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
. By 1976 they were $41 million, and Ballas sold his company the following year to Emerson Electric Company
Emerson Electric Company
Emerson Electric Company is a major multinational corporation headquartered in Ferguson, Missouri, United States. This Fortune 500 company manufactures products and provides engineering services for a wide range of industrial, commercial, and consumer markets.Emerson is one of the largest...
.