From Backyard Prototype to a Decade on the Market: Launching The Fly Cage

The inventor

Tom Pray knows biting flies better than almost anyone. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in entomology from the University of New Hampshire, is a 27-year pest control veteran and public speaker, and owns Ecotech Pest Control Services, which serves over 1,000 clients. He is also a licensed pesticide supervisor.

After years in the field, Tom kept running into the same problem. Nothing on the market actually worked, so he set out to build something that did. Drawing on his entomology background and field experience, he worked toward a simpler, more practical solution: a device that captures and removes biting flies without chemicals or pesticides.

The insight

Tom’s design turns the fly’s own behavior against it. Horse flies are visual hunters that spot the dark, warm shape of an animal and come in to investigate. When startled or finished investigating, their hardwired escape response is to fly straight up. The Fly Cage puts a wind-driven black lure below and a mesh cage above. The upward flight path leads straight into the cage, and once inside, the fly can’t escape.

It’s a smart idea, but an idea and a crude prototype are a long way from a product customers can buy.

From prototype to Version 1

ILG partnered with Tom to take the Fly Cage from a rough working prototype to a product ready for manufacturing. That meant turning a proof of concept into something that could be built consistently, shipped to customers, and set up by homeowners and horse owners with no special knowledge.

Version 1 went to market and sold its first 1,000 units. That proved the concept worked outside Tom’s own test sites, and people were willing to pay for it.

Listening to customers: Version 2

A thousand units in the field also meant a thousand sources of real-world feedback. Rather than coast on early success, ILG and Tom used what customers told them to redesign the product from the ground up.

The result is today’s Fly Cage:

• Materials: a powder-coated aluminum frame with marine-grade fabrics, engineered for multiple seasons of outdoor use.
• Setup: it ships fully assembled. You unfold it, extend the legs and stake it to the ground, with no tools needed.
• Power and chemicals: no pesticides, attractants or bait, and it’s safe for children, pets, horses and all livestock.
• Coverage: one trap covers approximately half an acre within line of sight.

Ten-plus years and thousands of units later

Version 2 has since sold thousands of units, and the Fly Cage has been on the market for well over a decade. Today it ships from Fishers, Indiana to horse farms, waterfront homes and backyards across the country.

The product also has lasting benefits for customers. Each female horse fly caught is one that won’t lay 100–800 eggs, so over weeks and seasons the local fly population drops dramatically. Customers keep telling the same story. A Delaware customer plagued by greenhead flies reported a huge reduction in these aggressive pests after setting up the Fly Cage.

Why it worked

The Fly Cage succeeded because the right expertise met the right execution:

• An inventor who understood the problem: Tom brought the science and the field experience.
• A partner who knew how to launch: ILG brought the path from prototype to manufacturing, launch and long-term sales.
• Listening to customers: turning Version 1 feedback into a better Version 2 is what gave the product its staying power.

The Fly Cage is sold today at bitingflytrap.com. See it in our product showcase.