Robert "RJ" Batts
Inventor and CEO

Anyone who has ever cut their finger while cutting or chopping food may want to thank RJ Batts, the 15-year-old inventor of Tip Tough®, a simple and inexpensive way to protect professional chefs and home cooks from injury.

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When RJ was 12, he became consumed with the idea that there had to be a way to help his dad, a professional chef, protect his hands.  Bob would often come home with painful cuts and bandaged fingers which sometimes kept him out of work.

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A year later, 3-D printouts in hand, RJ was accepted into the Young Entrepreneurs Academy at the Salisbury (MD) Area Chamber of Commerce and formed his company, Picklehead LLC.  For months he went to classes and on field trips after school, learning how to set up a business, find funding, craft a pitch, and bring the Tip Tough® to market – all while attending middle school and playing on his soccer team.

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In October 2016, RJ received start-up funding from the Shore Hatchery Competition at Salisbury University (beating out grown-ups from 30 businesses) for a Second-Place award of $15,000.  Then, TEDCo awarded Picklehead the Rural Business Innovation Grant for the design and prototype phase of the Pro Chef Tip Tough® in stainless steel and the Home Chef Tip Tough® in molded plastic.  In March 2017, RJ was featured as the youngest inventor to present a product at the International Home and Housewares Show in Chicago, and was chosen to pitch to Home Shopping Network.  Since then, he has brought his product through the manufacturing and packaging process while honing his skills as an entrepreneur by attending the inaugural HSN’s American Dreams Academy.​

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RJ grew his business by attending vending events in the Mid-Atlantic and spreading the word about Tip Tough’s safety in the kitchen. He was selected to appear on several television shows and spoke at events like the US Patent and Trademark Office Invention-Con, encouraging young people to think inventively and to follow their dreams. He received the Salisbury Chamber of Commerce Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award in 2018 and the Maryland Small Business Administration’s Rising Star Student Entrepreneur Award in 2018.

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The Tip Tough’s big break nationally came in November 2021 when RJ appeared on the new small business pitch show America’s Big Deal. Small businesses pitch their products to America and the product that has the highest sales by the end of the show gets to make a big deal with one of three major retailers. RJ won the show with his Tip Tough and struck a $100, 000 deal with Joy Mangano of QVC. 

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Now with a national audience RJ continues to explore ways to expand his product line and encourage young entrepreneurs to take the chance on themselves and their ideas.