Now & Zen
Encyclopedia
Now & Zen, Inc. is an American company founded by Steve McIntosh
in January 1995. Based in Boulder, Colorado
. The target market for the firm's brand is the demographic known as the "Cultural Creatives
," a progressive segment of American society that has been responsible for the substantial growth of the natural foods industry. McIntosh had previously worked as an executive in the natural foods industry and sought to create consumer electronic products that would appeal to this same demographic.
The Now & Zen product that first proved the concept of a "natural electronic product" was The Zen Alarm Clock, which was introduced in early 1996.
The original Zen Alarm Clock is a triangular-shaped wooden clock that wakes users gradually with a series of acoustic chimes. In 2001 the firm introduced a portable, digital version of its chiming alarm clock
, which has now become the company’s most popular product. In 2005 the firm introduced an alarm clock and timer featuring a six-inch brass bowl-gong
, called The Zen Timepiece.
As of 2008, Now & Zen’s product line remains popular, with the firm continuing to exhibit modest annual growth in sales volume.
with motifs from traditional Japanese culture. He set out to create products like the Tiffany Lamp
, which was both an appliance and an icon of Art Nouveau
design.
. But over time the firm contracted out a variety of subassemblies, such as its wooden clock bodies. In 2003, after rejecting an acquisition bid from Gaiam, Inc.
, the firm adopted a new business model under which the complete manufacturing of finished products was done overseas by third party manufactures. This new business model allowed the firm to concentrate on marketing, leading to the opening of the company’s Downtown Boulder showroom.
Now & Zen holds two patents covering both the design and utility aspects of its chiming alarm clocks: U.S. Patent No. Des. 390,121, issued February 3, 1998, and U.S. Patent No. US 6,819,635 B2, issued November 16, 2004.
. Although the firm has produced a wide variety of "natural-themed" household products since its inception, its product line has now been largely limited to its acoustic alarm clocks and timers. The wood for all Now & Zen products is grown on North American tree farms and shipped to Shenzhen, China to be made into clock bodies. The electronics are made in Shenzhen, China, and the firm’s bowl-gongs are made in Moradabad, India.
Now & Zen's natural-themed products are closely associated with the natural foods industry, which has made Boulder, Colorado, its unofficial headquarters. Besides Now & Zen, other prominent Boulder-based natural product companies include Celestial Seasonings
, where McIntosh worked as an executive prior to founding Now & Zen, Wild Oats Market, and Pangea Organics.
, the Good Morning America
television show, The Washington Post
, and Good Housekeeping Magazine. Now & Zen's Zen Alarm Clock continues to be widely reviewed and discussed on blogs featured on websites throughout the world. Zen Clocks are sold worldwide, but distribution outside the U.S. is limited.
The ongoing success of the Zen Alarm Clock as a distinctive decorative accessory, reflecting a vaguely "New Age
" aesthetic, positions it somewhere in between the high design of the classic Tiffany Lamp, and a popular culture novelty item, such as the Lava Lamp
.
positioning, some reviewers have ridiculed it. In his review of the product in The New York Times
, reviewer William L. Hamilton wrote: "It is like a monk losing his temper — om to OM! Now! Tranquil, tenacious — the Dalai Lama as drill sergeant". Similarly, Dads Magazine referred to the aesthetics of the triangular shaped version of the clock as a "hippie carpenter contraption," but nevertheless praised the way it woke users gently and gradually. Moreover, despite the ongoing success of The Zen Alarm Clock, the company has also had some failures, such as The Affirmation Station, introduced in 1998, which was designed to wake users with their personal affirmations. However, the product failed to gain consumer acceptance and was discontinued after three years on the market.
Steve McIntosh
Stephen Ian “Steve” McIntosh is an American author, activist, lawyer, and entrepreneur. He is the founder and president of Now & Zen, Inc., and an influential writer in the field of integral thought.-Biography:...
in January 1995. Based in Boulder, Colorado
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
. The target market for the firm's brand is the demographic known as the "Cultural Creatives
Cultural Creatives
Cultural Creatives is a term coined by sociologist Paul H. Ray and psychologist Sherry Ruth Anderson to describe a large segment in Western society that has recently developed beyond the standard paradigm of Modernists or Progressives versus Traditionalists or Conservatives...
," a progressive segment of American society that has been responsible for the substantial growth of the natural foods industry. McIntosh had previously worked as an executive in the natural foods industry and sought to create consumer electronic products that would appeal to this same demographic.
The Now & Zen product that first proved the concept of a "natural electronic product" was The Zen Alarm Clock, which was introduced in early 1996.
The original Zen Alarm Clock is a triangular-shaped wooden clock that wakes users gradually with a series of acoustic chimes. In 2001 the firm introduced a portable, digital version of its chiming alarm clock
Alarm clock
An alarm clock is a clock that is designed to make a loud sound at a specific time. The primary use of these clocks is to awaken people from their night's sleep or short naps; they are sometimes used for other reminders as well. To stop the sound, a button or handle on the clock is pressed; but...
, which has now become the company’s most popular product. In 2005 the firm introduced an alarm clock and timer featuring a six-inch brass bowl-gong
Gong
A gong is an East and South East Asian musical percussion instrument that takes the form of a flat metal disc which is hit with a mallet....
, called The Zen Timepiece.
As of 2008, Now & Zen’s product line remains popular, with the firm continuing to exhibit modest annual growth in sales volume.
Inspiration
McIntosh’s original intent when founding the company was to create useful household products that would reflect an emerging new "spiritual renaissance" aesthetic, combining the harmonic proportions of sacred geometrySacred geometry
Sacred geometry is the geometry used in the planning and construction of religious structures such as churches, temples, mosques, religious monuments, altars, tabernacles; as well as for sacred spaces such as temenoi, sacred groves, village greens and holy wells, and the creation of religious art...
with motifs from traditional Japanese culture. He set out to create products like the Tiffany Lamp
Tiffany lamp
A Tiffany lamp is a type of lamp with many different types of glass shade. The most famous was the stained leaded glass lamp. Tiffany lamps are considered part of the Art Nouveau movement.- History :...
, which was both an appliance and an icon of Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
design.
Manufacture and patents
Originally, the firm manufactured most aspects of The Zen Alarm Clock at its factory in Longmont, ColoradoLongmont, Colorado
Longmont is a Home Rule Municipality in Boulder and Weld counties in the U.S. state of Colorado. Longmont is located in Northern Colorado. Longmont is the 13th most populous city in the State of Colorado. The word "Longmont" comes from Longs Peak, a prominent mountain named for explorer Stephen H....
. But over time the firm contracted out a variety of subassemblies, such as its wooden clock bodies. In 2003, after rejecting an acquisition bid from Gaiam, Inc.
Gaiam
Gaiam is a "lifestyle company" that sells products catered toward healthy and sustainable living.Gaiam is probably best known for fitness media, such as its award-winning yoga routine videos taught by well-known instructors such as Rodney Yee....
, the firm adopted a new business model under which the complete manufacturing of finished products was done overseas by third party manufactures. This new business model allowed the firm to concentrate on marketing, leading to the opening of the company’s Downtown Boulder showroom.
Now & Zen holds two patents covering both the design and utility aspects of its chiming alarm clocks: U.S. Patent No. Des. 390,121, issued February 3, 1998, and U.S. Patent No. US 6,819,635 B2, issued November 16, 2004.
Products
All Now & Zen products have been conceived, designed, and invented by founder and president Steve McIntoshSteve McIntosh
Stephen Ian “Steve” McIntosh is an American author, activist, lawyer, and entrepreneur. He is the founder and president of Now & Zen, Inc., and an influential writer in the field of integral thought.-Biography:...
. Although the firm has produced a wide variety of "natural-themed" household products since its inception, its product line has now been largely limited to its acoustic alarm clocks and timers. The wood for all Now & Zen products is grown on North American tree farms and shipped to Shenzhen, China to be made into clock bodies. The electronics are made in Shenzhen, China, and the firm’s bowl-gongs are made in Moradabad, India.
Now & Zen's natural-themed products are closely associated with the natural foods industry, which has made Boulder, Colorado, its unofficial headquarters. Besides Now & Zen, other prominent Boulder-based natural product companies include Celestial Seasonings
Celestial Seasonings
Celestial Seasonings is a tea company based in Boulder, Colorado, United States that specializes in herbal tea but also sells green, wellness, red, white, chai, holiday and black teas. They account for over $100,000,000 in herbal tea blends sales in the United States annually. All of their teas are...
, where McIntosh worked as an executive prior to founding Now & Zen, Wild Oats Market, and Pangea Organics.
Popular culture
The Zen Alarm Clock is now well-recognized in American popular culture, having been reviewed by national media such as The New York Times, The Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, the Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
television show, The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, and Good Housekeeping Magazine. Now & Zen's Zen Alarm Clock continues to be widely reviewed and discussed on blogs featured on websites throughout the world. Zen Clocks are sold worldwide, but distribution outside the U.S. is limited.
The ongoing success of the Zen Alarm Clock as a distinctive decorative accessory, reflecting a vaguely "New Age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
" aesthetic, positions it somewhere in between the high design of the classic Tiffany Lamp, and a popular culture novelty item, such as the Lava Lamp
Lava lamp
A lava lamp is a decorative novelty item that contains blobs of colored wax inside a glass vessel filled with clear liquid; the wax rises and falls as its density changes due to heating from a incandescent light bulb underneath the vessel. The appearance of the wax is suggestive of pāhoehoe lava,...
.
Criticism
Because of The Zen Alarm Clock's New AgeNew Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
positioning, some reviewers have ridiculed it. In his review of the product in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, reviewer William L. Hamilton wrote: "It is like a monk losing his temper — om to OM! Now! Tranquil, tenacious — the Dalai Lama as drill sergeant". Similarly, Dads Magazine referred to the aesthetics of the triangular shaped version of the clock as a "hippie carpenter contraption," but nevertheless praised the way it woke users gently and gradually. Moreover, despite the ongoing success of The Zen Alarm Clock, the company has also had some failures, such as The Affirmation Station, introduced in 1998, which was designed to wake users with their personal affirmations. However, the product failed to gain consumer acceptance and was discontinued after three years on the market.