CHARLESTOWN, Mass. — Bob and Jennifer McMahon have a new business venture; it’s one they never saw coming. It was born out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Jennifer said we need to poke a hole in the mask so we can drink with it, and the light bulbs went off and the next thing we knew we created Your Social Mask, I mean within 10 minutes,” Bob McMahon said.
The Charlestown couple developed a face mask that can be worn while dining out. It's called 'Your Social Mask.' You open the fold, which is kept in place by Velcro, to eat or drink and close it for socializing.
"Then, when you need to eat or drink, you open it up and you sip. Whatever you need to do, you talk with your loved ones, then when the waiter comes back to your table you close your mask," Bob McMahon said while demonstrating how the mask works.
The masks aren’t just for eating. The cotton masks can also be used for bikers and joggers who want to close it as people approach them. The McMahons have a patent pending and are working with a Needham company to manufacture and distribute the masks.
"We just basically started this business about two weeks ago, now officially, and we’ve sold well over a thousand masks and many more are coming in," said Jennifer McMahon.
The masks are not FDA approved and they don't offer the same protection as medical-grade masks, but the McMahon's said what they do offer is giving people a sense of confidence to go out and eat again.
"We still don’t know what the inside of a restaurant will look like in a couple of weeks, so we hope these masks makes people feel more comfortable and still be respectful of their neighbors," Bob McMahon said.
>>>MORE: It’s official: Phase 2 of reopening Massachusetts starts Monday
The masks cost $30 for a two-pack, $56 for a four-pack and $110 for a 10-pack. A percentage of each sale will go toward two non-profits, the World Central Kitchen and the Restaurant Strong Fund.
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