Name: Larry Schneider Invention: Aw Shucks Oyster Opener Hometown: Damariscotta, Maine Current occupation: Pub owner Website: Aw Shucks

When Larry Schneider moved to Maine from Ohio with his wife nearly 10 years ago, he never guessed he'd become the owner of one of the most happening pubs in the area. Larry's pub, the King Eider, became the only bar in the mid-coast area to serve fresh oysters. (They're so damn hard to open, Schneider says, other restaurants didn't want to make the effort.)

As Schneider's customer base grew, he was having a harder and harder time keeping up with the demand for oysters. That's when he invented the Aw Shucks! It's Schneider's patented oyster opener, with a stainless steel blade mounted on a lever arm. It's a simple, safe, and fast way to open stubborn bivalves.

Schneider still uses his first prototype at the King Eider Pub's oyster bar. "I had folks at the bar tell me, 'Larry, you need to make more of these and sell them,'" Schneider says. So that's what he's doing. Schneider's selling the King Eider and pursuing Aw Shucks! full-time. He has already sold 200 units.