Pairingware, a Tampa company, was included as a special mention in Time Magazine's 200 Best Inventions of 2023 list Wednesday.
The company sells an interlocking reusable plastic plate and cup that "makes munching on finger food a little easier," Time Magazine writes. Its founders, Gil and Monica Sanchez, are Tampa locals.
Gil is a lawyer with the "entrepreneurship bug," he said. They received the news of the inclusion last week and were honored to be noticed.
"It was just a monumental moment for her and I, and our family and our kids," Gil said.
The Sanchezes were inspired to create Pairingware because they are "foodies." They were regularly confronted with crowded tables and burdened hands, Gil said. He started 3D modeling a prototype of the plate-cup hybrid several years ago and went to market in 2023. Today, the company is focused on selling in bulk to businesses and is in talks with local businesses and hotels for potential sales, Gil said.
The name of the product, Pairingware, is registered as a federal trademark, but the interlocking device is still patent pending, according to a release.
The website is occasionally selling units to individuals, and Pairingware plans to stay and hire in Tampa as the company grows, Gil said.
Time Magazine creates the inventions list by compiling solicited online nominations. Time editors and global correspondents nominate companies focusing on emerging fields like artificial intelligence or sustainability, according to its website. The Sanchezes applied after hearing about the application process, Gil said.
This was the only Tampa company on the Time list. Other companies from the Tampa Bay area included in Time's previous invention lists are Cake, an electric motorbike company, and a product by Pinellas Park-based company Transitions Optical Inc.
