Custom product company Zazzle just announced that it’s teaming up with Dodocase, the manufacturer behind what we’ve described as “one of TechCrunch’s favorite iPad cases.”
When I met with Zazzle’s co-founder and Chief Product Officer Jeff Beaver a few months ago, he told me that one of the company’s goals is to partner with local manufacturers. Zazzle is based in the Bay Area (Redwood City, to be precise), and it says that each case produced through this partnership will be “handcrafted in San Francisco.” The company is offering Dodocase iPad cases in the style of hardcover books and iPhone 5 wallets. As with any other product offered on Zazzle, you can customize the cases with your own images and text.
Zazzle writes:
The Dodo bird remains on the list of extinct animals but thanks to DODOcase, bookbinding continues to thrive. DODOcase has expanded and grown their San Francisco operation to include an in house print shop, bookbindery and woodshop. Combining DODOcases’ style and quality with Zazzle’s customization — now that’s something you can hold onto for years to come.
You can browse the selection of iPad cases here.
In 1999 Robert Beaver and his two sons founded Zazzle.com, a service which enables users to create their own products. Zazzle.com users can create virtually anything, from customized t-shirts to postage stamps. Users can also recieve a commission on products that they sell and design themselves. Zazzle is funded primarily by Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers and Sherpalo Ventures, who in 2005 provided $16 million in seres A funding. Major competitors include Cafepress, Spreadshirt. ...
The DODOcase philosophy is simple, manufacture things locally and help keep the art of bookbinding alive and well by adapting it to a world of e-readers and iPads. Each DODOcase cover has its own unique character as it was handmade in San Francisco using techniques developed hundreds of years ago.
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