Greater Newport Chamber hosts Shark Tank -style pitch contest
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Rhode Island Inno - Ocean State Shields joins global accelerator program
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As 2020 began, Allyson Cote and Todd Thomas were not thinking, talking about or making igloos.
Now, they have the third version of their commercial-grade dining igloos ready to launch with upgrades that make them easier to assemble, available with more options and offered in different colors. A patent has been filed for their air-filtration system.
Welcome to the world of pandemic innovation.
Ocean State Shields is a Rhode Island small business that launched into the world of igloos in April. They made fire-code compliance a priority, said Cote, company CEO.
Now you see their igloos outside local restaurants including Chaska in Cranston, Bluewater Bar & Grill in Barrington and Malt in Newport. They have also been delivered to day-care centers, a food pantry and a construction company.
The local business is creating antimicrobial products that help small businesses keep people safe.
January 26, 2021
Ocean State Shields came through in the clutch for Rhode Island’s small businesses. The local startup launched in April by co-founders Allyson Cote and Todd Thomas in response to the COVID-19 crisis. The partners immediately got to work calculating what local restaurants and other businesses might need to continue operating safely during the pandemic and they figured out ways to have those items manufactured in Rhode Island.
They created a package for restaurants to continue operating outdoors in the winter, which includes a ten-foot in diameter heated igloo that is made with fire safety-compliant materials. “We are the only local provider that I know of that can actually get the igloos that make fire code,” says Cote.