The one that rolled away . . . Series: MADE IN CHICAGO (STANDARD)

From: Chicago Sun-Times | Date: May 19, 1991 | Copyright information

Being first doesn't always make you a winner.

Elias Howe received the first U.S. patent in 1846 for the sewing machine, but Isaac M. Singer and sewing are forever stitched together.

Gordon Ware, president of Chicago Roller Skate Co., received the first U.S. patent in 1964 for roller blades, but Scott Olson, an entrepreneur from Minnesota, turned it into a booming business.

For Chicago Roller Skate, it's the story about how a great business rolled away.

"We sold only 20,000 roller blades before the market disappeared," said Jim Peters, president of the West Side firm. Chicago Roller ...

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