Chuck Rizzo and Michael Losover are betting there are lots of budding entrepreneurs out there with a great product but no idea how to get it on the shelves of national retailers.

Now the two have launched a new venture called Take Me National to help aspiring entrepreneurs looking to grow their company from a startup to a successful business with nationwide distribution.

Getting a product noticed is something Rizzo and Losover know plenty about.

With their previous company, Magna Card, they developed and marketed a line of more than 20 magnetized items, which they got onto the shelves of Home Depot, Lowe’s, Wal-Mart, and other major retailers.

Go into stores such as Staples, OfficeMax, and Home Depot and you’ll find Magna Card’s signature product, a peel-off magnet that can be affixed to the back of a business card. Over the years, the products Rizzo and Losover developed at Magna Card have racked up more than $100 million in sales at the retail level. They sold the company in 2001, but stayed with it until 2006.

They launched Take Me National in March. The company aims to be a one-stop resource for businesspeople, including offering help with a company’s website, Internet search optimization, and getting products onto national retailers’ shelves. Rizzo, 48, is CEO. Losover, 50, is vice president of marketing.

“They have a passion for their business and for their product,” said Alan Krivoshey, who, as a buyer for OfficeMax, made the decision to carry Magna Card’s magnetic business cards in the retailer’s stores nationwide.

Rizzo and Losover know what it takes to catch a retailer’s eye with a new and innovative item, Krivoshey said.

“They pushed and pushed and pushed and said it’s new and something different,” he said.

Take Me National offers a variety of services to clients, starting with a review and evaluation of a product’s prospects and whether a company is ready to take its product national. The company charges $795 for the assessment. Its other services include consulting, website development, online search optimization, and product marketing and representation.

Small companies face a tough challenge in convincing national retailers to stock their products, said Craig Panos, a business counselor with the Maryland Small Business Development Center in Baltimore. A marketing pro can help get a company’s product in front of the buyers who choose which products a store will carry, Panos said.

“It’s hard to get noticed,” he said. “It takes a lot of perseverance and a lot of time.”

Rizzo recalls how Magna Card landed its first deal with a national retailer for its magnetic business cards. He and Losover went straight to the top, mailing a sample to then-Staples CEO Thomas Stemberg. That resulted in a meeting with a buyer from Staples, who placed an order.

“It’s incredible how many people who have ideas don’t know where to turn for help and guidance,” Rizzo said.

Paul Hagen, an entrepreneur in Redmond, Washington, is working with Take Me National to help expand sales of VacuPractor, a device for relieving lower-back pain.

Hagen, who signed on as a client about a month ago, said Rizzo has been a savvy guide in figuring out that a direct-sales approach, selling VacuPractor from the company’s website, is the way to go. Rizzo’s experience from years in the business has been a real help, Hagen said.