AMERICAN INSIGHT
American supports entrepreneurialism and small-business growth
through its Innovators Initiative, which focuses onworkingwith startups
and small-business customers toempower their success.
Visit
aa.com/innovators
to learnmore.
A
sadults,weknownot toroll
aroundon thecarpetatourgate
in theairport,butyoungchil-
drendon’t, and theywill. It’snot their
fault.Parents,on theotherhand, cando
somethingabout it.
ChristieBarany,oneof thecofound-
ersofMonkeyMat,was in thatexact
situation.Shespenta lotof
timeatairports trying to
keepher twoyoungdaugh-
tersclean.
Baranykeptcircling
around to the ideaofa
portablesurfaceshecould
bringwithheronher travels.
Shewantedandneeded
something thathad thedurabilityofan
outdoor tentwith theportabilityofa
tablet.Shementionedher idea to long-
timebusinesspartnerCourtneyTurich,
andMonkeyMatwasofficiallyborn.
Together, thetwowomenrealizedthat
airportfloorswereonlythetipofthepro-
verbial iceberg.TheMonkeyMatcould
alsobeusedathotels,outdoorsporting
events,picnics, festivalsandparks.
“There isnothing thatprovides the
portability, versatilityand functionality
withstyle like theMonkeyMat,”says
Barany. “It’s theperfectsolution for
protection fromanyquestionablyclean
floor, inoroutdoors: everywhereyou
explore.”
When foldedupcompletely, the
MonkeyMatfits intoasix-by-six inch
pouch.When it’sunfurled, themat
clocks inatfive-by-five feet,
orasBarany likes tosay, “It’s
bigenough forawhole troop
ofmonkeys.”Aside from
that, theMonkeyMat isma-
chinewashableandwasbuilt
withdurability inmind.
BaranyandTurich took
theMonkeyMat toABC’s
SharkTank
inseasonfiveandwere
beyondexcited topartnerwithMark
CubanandLoriGreiner.
WrittenbyFrankGruber,CEOofTech.Co, asmall
businesspartnerofAmericanAirlines.Tech.Cooffers
techandstartupnews, eventsandresources.Learnmore
at
/
.
MONKEYMAT
Turnanyfloor intoaplayareawithMonkeyMat
116
DECEMBER2015
AMERICANWAY
Offeringyou
moreacross the
Atlantic
Our transatlantic relationship
providesexpanded travel options
InOctober, we celebratedour five-year
anniversarywithour transatlanticpartners:
BritishAirways, Iberia andFinnair.
Together, we’re able tooffer youmore
than 100nonstopflights dailybetween
keybusiness centers, alongwith themost
nonstopflights toLondon fromnearly 30
NorthAmericandestinations.
When you travel between theUnited
States andEurope, we’llmake sure your
journey is comfortable from takeoff to
touchdown.On select routes, including
everyflight fromNewYork toLondon,
you’ll enjoy fully lie-flat seats inFirst and
BusinessClass cabins, alongwith the
experienceof travelingonplanes such as
theBritishAirwaysA380 andour flagship
777-300ER that bothboast industry-
leading amenities.
We’re alsogiving youmore
opportunities toenjoy evenmorebenefits,
likeearning and redeemingAmerican
AirlinesAAdvantage®miles across all
four carriers, and your choiceof over 100
premium lounges located throughout
theworld. If youneed assistancewhile
planning your travel, weoffer four global
contact centers that canhelp. In addition,
the
one
world® in-airport personal support
team is there to assist youwithquestions or
tight connections.
We’reproviding youwith seamless
transatlantic travel, but we’renot finished
yet.Our ties continue to strengthen, so
aswe’re striving tobe thegreatest by
providing youwith convenient travel
options, we know thebest is still yet to
come.
Learnmore today at
flytransatlantic.
com
andbook travel at
aa.com
.
Receive25%off
usingreferral code
“FLYAA25”at
monkeymat.com.
Thisspecialoffer is
valid through
Feb.29,2016.
MonkeyMat cofounders
ChristieBaranyand
CourtneyTurichenableyou
tobringaportableplay
area inabagwithyou.
