James Stobar
Industrial Designer, Product Innovator, and Legacy Builder
James Stobar is an accomplished industrial designer with over 25 years of experience turning bold ideas into impactful products. A fourth-generation designer, James graduated with honors from Art Center College of Design in 2000, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, both car designers at Ford Motor Co. His father, an award winning designer and inventor who also served as a professor at Art Center, recently passed away. James is proud to carry forward his legacy of creativity, craftsmanship, and innovation, with a deep appreciation for thoughtful design that solves real-world problems.
As the Lead Designer at JS Products, Inc., James designs and engineers the development of high-performance tools for the automotive and industrial sectors. You’ll find his designs on the shelves of major hardware stores like Lowe’s, Home Depot, and Menards. He co-founded the ToughBuilt tool brand in 2003, playing a key role in developing products that pushed the boundaries of traditional tool design with innovative features aimed at improving efficiency and safety. His global experience includes working in China, where he collaborated directly with manufacturers to bring complex designs to life, and he speaks a bit of Mandarin, which has enriched his ability to order Chinese food.
James credits having dyslexia for helping him see outside the box, fostering a unique approach to problem-solving and design thinking. With multiple patents under his belt, his portfolio reflects his ability to identify everyday challenges and engineer products that offer simple yet effective solutions. Married to a fashion designer, James and his wife are launching an innovative box opening tool, marking their first collaboration—a project that showcases their combined creativity and practical problem-solving skills.
James’s expertise lies in blending creative vision with practical engineering, solving complex design challenges, and bringing products from concept to market. When he’s not deep in design work, you’ll probably find him accidentally burning a steak, being outmaneuvered by his 3-year-old, or binging Sci-Fi shows—because even designers need inspiration from galaxies far, far away.