The POST-IT Notes Story

Art Fry, the inventor of Post-It Notes, used 3M’s famed 15–percent rule to develop a bookmark he could use for his choir book. Needing a placeholder that would stick temporarily without ripping the pages, he heard of a 3M adhesive developed by Dr. Spence Silver that did not stick to a surface permanently. Working with developers in engineering and production, they developed a unique coating process that would apply the nonsticky adhesive to the back of small pieces of paper. Once the prototype was in place, Fry used company employees to test his bookmark. Initial feedback was not reassuring as critics thought they were too frivolous and expensive. It was only after receiving a letter with his “bookmark” used to add scribbled comments, that Fry realized he hadn’t invented a bookmark but rather a new way to communicate or organize information.