The mission was simple for the Brothers Harris: Create a stand that could hold liquid beverages for these three devoted beanbag players who were tired of continuously bending down to pick up their drinks while playing their favorite sport.

And what Tony, James and David Harris - who grew up in Fulton, Ill. - came up with is a design and product that soon could be seen in national television ads.

The brothers invented the Koozy Kaddy in August 2008, said Tony Harris, 44, who lives in Clinton, Iowa, and is a quality chemist at 3M Corp. in Cordova, Ill. James, 35, of Geneva, Ill., is the plant manager at Lakone Co., a plastics moldings company in Montgomery, Ill., where the Koozy Kaddy is made. David, 40, is a sergeant with the Joliet (Ill.) Police Department.

Because James works at a plastics factory, it was suggested that he come up with a design to make a portable drink stand people could use while playing games like bean bags or horseshoes, or other activities such as tailgating, camping - or simply sitting around the yard.

"All three put ideas together and James designed the mold," Tony said.

There were some adjustments along the way, but eventually they worked out everything and began to manufacturer the Koozy Kaddy under the company name, JDT Harris Inc.

"It was the process of starting with something simple and all of us tweaking it to our final product," David said.

"When we were talking about it originally, I said, 'We can do this. My plant can do it,' " James said. "I could get it made."

He said they did research and found there were similar products on the market.

"There are other things out there that can hold up a drink," he said. "But we are a better product and cheaper. If anybody compares us to other things on the market, we are going to win."

The first finished product rolled off the assembly line in May.

"It is an exciting new business. We are just thrilled by this," Tony said. "We have sold over 1,000 units, but that is in just three areas, Joliet, Geneva and Clinton, Iowa. We thought we would sell some, but we did not think we would sell it this quickly."

The product sells for $29.99 on the Internet and includes free shipping. Buyers get two elevated dual drink holders. Two stand options are included to make the Koozy Kaddy adaptable to all surfaces - a stand base for hard surfaces and a spike that can go directly into soft surfaces. It also includes a nylon bag for storage and transportation.

In addition to selling it via their Web site, they also sell the product at Paul's, Hy-Vee and Lyons Filling Station in Clinton, and at the Rock Island Hy-Vee.

The brothers also have signed a contract with Media Corp. and are now considered an "As Seen On TV" product. Those commercials began airing Oct. 5 on ESPN, Spike TV and Comedy Central in selected markets as test sites. If the product sells well, Tony said those television commercials will go nationwide.

"If it goes national, it could really get crazy," David said.

"That is the exciting part of it, the potential of it."