Fifth Former James MacColl is killing stink dead, one bomb at a time. Over the past year, MacColl has been running X-Stink’d Bombs, which sells fine fragrance-infused deodorizer balls. These “bombs” are designed to kill odor.
X-Stink’d Bombs’ tagline reads “Bomb Your Stink.”
MacColl’s business venture started in September of 2023, when he enrolled in the Young Entrepreneur’s Academy (YEA) in Radnor. MacColl and his class began by discussing potential business ideas. He later received the assignment to start the business. The only guideline was that the company had to be launched within nine months.
“The hardest part was coming up with the name,” MacColl said. “I wanted to do something with stink, and making stink go away. The word extinct kept coming up. I put it together to get X-Stink’d. Instead of naming it X-Stink’d Deodorizer Balls, I named it X-Stink’d Bombs.”
MacColl then had to find a target market. He eventually landed on teenage boys, citing his and his brother’s experiences as inspiration.
“After sharing rooms with my brother for most of my life, I realized our stuff either smells [bad]or like a fine fragrance. We tried tons of products and methods to solve the issue of our stinky gear and spaces, but nothing worked. There had to be another way to solve our problem,” MacColl said.
MacColl then had to enlist a manufacturer. He was able to find one overseas that could manufacture the entire product and ship it to MacColl directly.
“Over winter break of the 2023-2024 school year, I did a lot of research on manufacturers. In the end, I found one that did exactly what I was looking for—they could infuse the fine fragrance right into the deodorizer ball.”
MacColl then decided to pitch at a competition.
In May of 2024, MacColl traveled to Rochester, New York, to attend YEA Regionals at the Golisano Institute. Around fifty young C.E.O.s from across the country pitched their ideas to judges in the morning, with the best five advancing to the national competition.
MacColl was one of the five.
Pitching at nationals was one of the turning points for MacColl’s budding business.
“Pitching at nationals was surreal,” MacColl said. “I pitched my business in front of five hundred people. Lights were shining on me on the stage. It felt like I was in the Super Bowl.”
MacColl did not end up winning, but he nonetheless gained memories and experience from the competition.
“I still made some great connections with great people,” MacColl said.
Since nationals, MacColl has focused on selling his product.
In late May, he received around fifty sample packages, which he gave to his early donors. MacColl spent the summer of 2024 building a strong social media presence.
At the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year, MacColl finally received his first full shipment, consisting of 2500 packages. He has already sold approximately 400 packages; 200 of those went to Director of Athletics Mr. Michael Murphy.
MacColl has also sold many of his packages to upper school students.
Fifth Former Samuel Putter loves the product. “X-Stink’d bombs are great. I toss two in my sports bag and they take the smell out. Also, unlike other deodorizer balls, they actually smell good,” Putter said.
MacColl thinks Mr. Murphy may distribute the products to Haverford athletes. Whether you’re an athlete or just anybody who wants to kill stink, look out for James MacColl’s X-Stink’d Bombs.
