South Euclid's Brian Tighe has developed several variety of his magnetic Cap-Stop bottle openers, including these stock designs.

(Jeff Piorkowski/special to cleveland.com)

Brian Tighe and his Cap-Stops.

SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio -- Nobody likes to give a gift that isn't well received.

In the case of South Euclid's Brian Tighe, the disappointment he experienced upon giving such a gift led to an idea, and then an entrepreneurial opportunity.

Tighe, 27, said he and a friend would spend summer days fishing and enjoying the weather at that friend's grandfather's property. The property included a pond upon which the grandfather last year built a dock.

"As kind of a 'dockwarming' gift, I gave him a Pepsi Cola bottle cap opener to put on the dock," Tighe said. "A couple of weeks later, I asked him how he liked the gift and, to my surprise, he said he didn't really like it."

The problem with the gift was that once caps were snapped off bottles, they would fall to the dock floor, littering the area. Tighe immediately went to work to rectify the problem.

"I found a super strong magnet with a countersunk hole and nailed it below the opener so it would catch the caps before they fell," Tighe said.

Friends joked that Tighe should go into business producing such cap-catchcing bottle openers. While the idea of using a magnet to catch caps had been used before, Tighe thought a little bit deeper about the idea.

What if he turned out a high-quality product that also featured graphics?

Working with his father, Bill, in his father's basement, Tighe began turning out a variety of what came to be known as the Cap-Stop. Emblazoned on these products were graphics such as the abbreviation "CLE;" the helmet stripes and colors of the Cleveland Browns; and a picture of Benjamin Franklin with the Founding Father's quote, "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."

The 2007 University School graduate served as his fledgling company's marketer, and was soon after able to place his product in Knuth's Boutique stores in Pepper Pike and Westlake, where they began selling at a healthy rate.

The public's love of sports has played a big part in Cap-Stop's early success.

"I envisioned people showing off their team pride at tailgate parties or at their homes," Tighe said.

The Cap-Stop is made solid by the use of materials such as rare earth magnets (several are included in each piece), red oak, and a plastic surface to ensure that the graphic does not fade or wear down. The product measures eight inches by three and a half inches.

The back of the Cap-Stop features bumper pads. It can magnetically affix to metal surfaces, and screws are included if needed to attach the product to a wall.

"These are strong magnets," Tighe said. "They stick to any metal surface. It won't pop off the wall when you use it. We've done a lot of research on that."

Tighe said it took about a year of tinkering to develop the Cap-Stop design of today. That design has impressed sellers.

While he does not have official licensing rights from the NFL, the designs Tighe has created -- he learned the art of graphics from a friend in that business -- has led to Cap-Stop being sold in Cleveland Browns', Buffalo Bills' and Philadelphia Eagles' team shops.

"That's the next step," Tighe said of gaining licensing to use official team logos on his product.

The Cap-Stop also comes in the colors of the Cleveland Indians and Cavaliers, and is sold by minor league baseball teams such as the Lake County Captains and Lancaster Barnstormers.

"We carry stock designs and do custom orders. There is no quantity requirement for custom orders."

Custom orders often include photos of customers or their pets.

Tighe, who has left his former job in the packaging industry to operate his business, said the Cap-Stop retails for $45 apiece, and costs slightly more for custom orders

In August, Tighe, who along with family members sells the Cap-Stop at local trade shows and flea markets, plans to start a Kickstarter campaign to raise further funding.

For information about the Kickstarter campaign and about Cap-Stop, visit cap-stop.com.

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