Falling asleep while doing homework may not be such a waste of time, if an academic-themed pillowcase, designed by AU student Barry Weinstein, is involved.
Weinstein, a junior in the Kogod School of Business, created a new business called Pillowcase Studies to sell pillowcases printed with the basic tenets of some of AU’s most popular majors.
There are pillowcases for psychology, corporate finance, political science, drama, art history and biology, according to the website of WorksProgress NYC, the company that prints the pillowcases.
Each pillowcase features key equations, diagrams, theories or historical events for the subject.
“The idea of the company is to give people the voice to say how much they love their majors,” Weinstein said.
The creation of Pillowcase Studies came to Weinstein from an old study habit he used when he was studying financial accounting.
Weinstein would write the necessary formulas and concepts on Post-It notes and put them on his refrigerator, his door and even his pillow. If he cited the fact correctly, he would be able to get his soda, leave his home or sleep.
Weinstein found his method much more productive than pulling all-nighters in the library.
“There’s no reason why college kids should have to learn in such a stressful environment which makes them hate their major,” Weinstein said.
He sees the pillowcases as students’ declaration of passion for their majors, rather than as a basic reminder of the information most students learn in their 100-level classes.
He has been working with students across the country, mostly his friends from high school, to develop and market the pillowcases.
Weinstein also talked to various AU professors, including Dan Abraham in the Department of Performing Arts and Yinqi Zhang, an assistant professor in Department of Accounting and Taxation, to get feedback on what information should be on the pillows.
He wanted to print information on the pillowcases that would be both interesting and important as well as advice for how to run the business.
“I thought it was a very interesting project, very entrepreneurial and pretty creative,” Abraham said.
Weinstein did not totally agree with the professor’s suggestions for information to be printed on the pillows.
“There’s a lot of information that the professors said should go on which is good information, but it’s not beautiful information,” Weinstein said. “It’s not something that would make you want to study.”
He has not yet recovered the initial costs of setting up the company, which were paid for with the help of investment from his family.
But Weinstein is confident he’ll be able to make a sizable profit with his endeavor, he said.
If the pillowcases become popular, he hopes to add more topic and color options. He even thinks the concept is unique enough that he may also start making plates with similar information.
“There’s definitely interest in it [Pillowcase Studies],” Weinstein said.
Learn more about Pillowcase Studies at www.pillowcasestudies.com
