Award winning website Kiddymania is thrilled to showcase the My Buggy Buddy Clip, designed to give parents an extra pair of hands when out with their little one. This essential piece of pram kit simply clips over the pram handle and snaps securely into place. Multiple shopping bags can be safely hooked onto the clip before snapping into place putting an end to the frustration of juggling shopping and pushing a pram with one hand argh! We all know that situation far too well.

Whether you are taking your baby for a brisk walk around the park, fitting in some errands at your local shops or whizzing around on public transport, the My Buggy Buddy Clip will allow you to securely fasten your bags to your pram freeing up your hands and limiting any strain of carrying bags awkwardly.

The My Buggy Buddy Clip fits a variety of pushchairs and is also great for shopping trolleys too – another place parents need an extra pair of hands. The secure clip opens and closes with one simple flick. It can hold shopping bags, hand bags and changing bags so you can attend to the task in need.

It’s also idea for days out and securely carrying other items such as camera bags, swimming bags or picnic goodies. A lockable version is also available so you can secure your pram if you need to leave it when out and about.

The My Buggy Buddy Clip is used world wide and is so easy to use. It is lightweight and oh so versatile. Kiddymania believe that once you get hold of this essential pram kit you’ll wonder how you ever managed without it. The My Buggy Buddy Clip is available from www.kiddymania.co.uk priced at £.5.95

“The days of living down the road from your family are largely gone, with many children only seeing grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins a few times a year or less,” explains Lucy Morley, the founder of Who Loves Me. “I created these cards after I realised it was more important for my son to be able to identify his grandparents as opposed to a ball or sheep!”

The cards have a photo on the front while on the back of the card is a brief description of that person. For example, a picture of Granddad could be on the front with the description, ‘Granddad likes fishing’ on the back. All of the pictures, names and words are uploaded by the customer on the easy to use website.

For babies, the cards are visually stimulating, help with family and friend recognition, and introduce first words. For toddlers, the cards are a fun new toy that teaches them about their family, while learning different colours, jungle animals and new vocabulary. They can also find the hidden heart in each of the animals. For children, the cards are a helpful reading aid and an excellent conversation starter. They make a great personalised gift for Christmas, birthdays and christenings.

Who Loves Me? cards give you all the educational value and interactive fun of a set of flash cards, but with the added benefits that they are unique to you and teach your child about something very important – who loves them! The cards have just won three awards in the 2011 Loved By Parents Awards – winning Gold for Best Baby Gift, Gold for Best Baby Print Product and Silver for Best Innovative Idea.

The cards have undergone thorough CE safety tests to meet European safety standards. They have none of the harmful chemicals that photos have, making them safe if they end up in little people’s mouths. They’re available online from www.wholovesme.co.uk. You can buy individual cards for £1.99 each or a pack of cards for £11.99 (8 cards) or £17.99 (16 cards) which come in their own presentation box.

Your Name and Age:  Jenny McLaughlan and I’m 35

Tell us about your family

Married to Stuart and have two children Maisie who is two and a half and Miller who is almost 14 months

What did you do before coming up with your business idea  and how was it making the transition?

I still do a day job as a sales manager and run the business. The transition is just working on the laptop in the evenings instead of watching TV and I love it!

When did you launch?

December 2010

How did you get started?

I was inspired on maternity leave, Miller was/is such a big teether and I was fed up of him putting everything in  his mouth including my necklaces! So I started to form the idea around a baby safe necklace, it took months of research to get the right material, manufacturer and produce to a good quality.

What research did you do before launching?

Looked into what teething toys were made of and what safety requirements were needed. Did some market research on some mums and checked that I was free to operate in the UK market.

How have you funded the business?

On my credit card! With being on maternity leave I did not have the financial backing or time to go through the very long process of securing a business sloan, so instead opted for an interest free credit card.

How do you promote your business? What has worked best?

I mostly rely on word of mouth and customer feedback which to date has been 100% fantastic! I also use twitter and facebook to spread the word. Twitter has been amazing! People are so genuine and helpful and it allows you to access all kinds of people. My biggest break was denise van outen tweeting about her gumigem necklace and how much she loved it, this has lead to further coverage in the press, including my upcoming live tv interview on Scotlands The Hour on the 14^th April

What has worked well about your business?

The fact customers genuinely LOVE this product and are so willing to spread the word.

What has been your biggest challenge so far? How have you dealt with it?

Cash flow and managing stock. Its hard to know what a bit of coverage will do in terms of converting into sales and you don’t want to let people down, but don’t want to over order and produce either!

How do you fit in work with the family?

Its all done after the day job and after the kids are in bed.

What advice would you give to someone else wanting to work in this area?

Go for it! Its hard work and a rolloer coaster ride, but its worth trying otherwise you will always wonder!

If you have a flexible working business opportunity, please explain briefly what you offer and how people find out more.

As time progresses and volumes increase we will struggle to make the necklaces ourselves and would be looking for people to string them together and tie clasps on. This would be on a volume basis and paid on completion to a high standard. It would be very flexible as long as it was managed within the time frame we agreed and could be slotted in around family and other commitments

Your website link. www.gumigem.co.uk

If you are developing a new product, protecting your idea is critical for many reasons. David Fannin of Sorcit has some tips to help you. This week he discusses branding and marketing of your new product.

Your brand identity is more than just a logo. It is about your brand promise or core marketing message. Defining your message and building your market image is key to competitive differentiation. No matter how small your business you need to know precisely how to communicate your uniqueness to the maximum number of people. Your corporate identity or ‘BRAND’ influences the opinion of your customers and potential customers about your business.  Sorcit can help you capture what your brand is about and the reason why your customers buy from you. You can then use this to develop a visual brand identity or logo and marketing message blueprint that can be used in all your marketing materials and across your business to ensure that you communicate your brand promise to your customers.    These are some of the key questions to be considered when implementing a Marketing Strategy.

• Have you clearly defined your vision and goals?
• Do you really know who your core customers (Target Audience) are?
• Are you maximizing the opportunities?
• Do you what makes your offer different?
• Do you know what your communication strategy is?
• Do you know what marketing techniques to use to “spread the word”?

More resources:

Look at www.sorcitproducts.com for more information about their services and to see examples of recent projects.

Read more about registering and protecting your product ideas in the Family Friendly Working Book.

Join She’s Ingenious for support for women inventors.

If you are developing a new product, protecting your idea is critical for many reasons. David Fannin of Sorcit has some tips to help you.  This week he discusses the importance of Quality Control.

Quality control is essential part of the process in order to maximise product sales and reduce your costs.  It’s also about ensuring that you get what you’re paying for from your suppliers.   Good Quality Control is all about reducing risks associated with poor quality, loading, storage, transportation and non-compliance with regulatory requirements, getting informed in advance about production problems and shipping delays,  ensuring that contractual obligations are met i.e. specifications, packaging, marking and delivery, and identify problems before products are shipped or distributed.

Inspections can happen at various stages during the production process depending on the product, potential risks and reputation of the manufacturer to deliver quality products.    A “During Production Check” ensures production processes, capacity, and actual goods produced – enabling you greater control and time for recommendations to improve production quality.   When at least 20% of production is completed, inspectors are sent to the factory to inspect production quality and status.   A “Pre-Shipment Inspection” is an on-site Product Inspection that ensures the conformity of production to your specifications. When at least 80% of production is completed and packaged, inspectors are sent to the factory to inspect the finished production following a  checklist or your custom requirements – protecting you from shipping non-conforming product.   Finally, a “Container Loading Check” guarantees the finished and packaged goods meet your specifications (product type and quantity) and are securely loaded for shipment.  The inspector guarantees the conformity of your production to your specifications and total order quantity.   The container loading process is monitored by the inspector, guaranteeing the container is loaded in its entirety and in a safe and secure manner.

Sorcit’s expert quality control team based out in China carries out stringent quality inspections before, during and after production to ensure high standards are consistent and met at all times.   We can also carry out thorough product testing on-site in China, typically at lower than UK prices, using accredited test laboratories to ensure products conform to the regulations of the destination countries.
More resources:

Look at www.sorcitproducts.com for more information about their services and to see examples of recent projects.

Read more about registering and protecting your product ideas in the Family Friendly Working Book.

Join She’s Ingenious for support for women inventors.

From my studies of posture, I knew we needed a carrier that would allow our daughter wriggle room.  So that she could take up any posture, and position which would change throughout the day.  We wanted a carrier that would keep her legs together, and would allow her mother to breast-feed discreetly, and that would permit her to lie down to sleep.  Above all it had to be comfortable for both infant and carrier.  We added a pocket on the shoulder area so that extra padding could be added as she got older, and heavier.

My first attempt was not a fully qualified success.  I had found a woollen scarf which I had bought with me from Scotland.  I knotted all four corners, slung it over one shoulder, and Fonda promptly curled up in it, and went to sleep.  Well it was obviously a success for her, but as Sachi, and I were different heights we had to keep undoing and retying the knots.  This became a nuisance, as Fonda’s weight pulled the knots together very tightly, and it became drag to keep on tying and re-tying them.  So one day, I had bought a piece of beautiful Batik fabric, and over the next three days sat folding one end of the future sling until eventually I had succeeded in reducing the 36 inch width into just two inches wide.  Also a benefit was that the particular way in which I folded the fabric resulted in the sides becoming shorter than the belly of the sling.  So I had made a hammock, which had the added benefit of keeping our beloved daughter securely in the belly of the sling.

For the two rings at the shoulder pad end, we first used wooden curtain rings.  These were not sturdy enough to take the strain of a sudden pull, so I got some 2 inch copper water pipe and sawed a piece off and gently tapped it in the inside of the curtain ring.  This was quite labour intensive but as the first few slings were made for ourselves that was not too much of a hardship.

Now of course I use nylon rings specially made for baby slings which can withstand a 500 lb. snatch test.  They can also withstand the heat of a washer and dryer.  However by using industrial grade Velcro one can undo the shoulder pad end, and take the rings of if you use a washer and dryer to clean your sling.  I do recommend hand wash and line dry but when you sell to the public you have to be prepared for the worst.

We knew that ideally Fonda needed skin to skin contact with us, unless she was ready to explore her new world on her own.  But for the first few months she seemed to be content to be carried in the sling wherever we went.  We had used very attractive fabrics as we wanted to look good, batiks, Hawaiian Tapa cloth, and for visits to Chinatown in Honolulu whenever business needed to be taken care of, subdued silks and worsted slings made a very attractive picture.

So much so, that one day, on my way to a business meeting, dressed in my best, no, my only suit, white shirt, and an old school tie, with Fonda in a silk, tartan sling, with gold rings no less; we passed through Queen Illani Palace where the Royal Hawaiian Band was giving a concert.  As I passed in front of the seated crowd, all dressed in their finest Hawaiian clothes, the band struck up, “I’m singing in the rain.” I just couldn’t help it, with Fonda chuckling, and beaming out on the crowd with a tiny golden umbrella over her to keep off the fierce sun, I broke into my best imitation of Gene Kelly and twirled and whirled, with Fonda obviously delighting in this spectacle, while comfortable and secure in the sling, with the crowd cheering, and applauding.

By now it was evident that we had the potential for a home business which would allow us to take turns of having full time contact with her, and be able to respond to her needs.  We had earlier on decided that for optimum development our daughter needed us both to help provide the environment in which she could best grow.  So this is what we did.  When it was my day to take her out, and sell the sling, Sachi would express breast milk, and I would take it in a padded belly bag, so it would keep cool.  That worked just fine.  We were off, and The Baby Sling was born.

Later on we used mothers or Grandmothers to sell our products as so many stores had young assistants, trying to serve mothers without having had any experience of their own to be able to help, and pass on information on labour, nurturing and all those other matters which pregnant or new mothers needed desperately to know.

Our teams of mothers and Grandmothers were able to be a magnificent source of carefully checked wisdom, not only from their past, but also from our own experiences which had resulted in such a wonderfully happy and contented child.  My mother used to repeat an old adage, the proof of the pudding is in the eating.

Happy nurturing,

Rayner Garner

If you are developing a new product, sourcing a supplier and manufacturing is the next step. In this article David Fannin of Sorcit has some tips to help you source manufacturing.

A good manufacturer will show willingness to want to work with you from the outset and will embrace any new products.   At this point, it is worth mentioning Big or Biggest is not always Best, however, it depends on what you are looking to manufacture and size of the market you are looking to sell to. Sometimes when you are developing something on a limited budget, small to medium sized manufacturers can be a better option.  Once you believe you have found the right manufacturer, you will then need to explore the most suitable material(s) & finish for your product, obtain any tooling/set-up costs and final unit costs based on various quantity breaks.   Finally, tooling & production leadtimes are the final pieces of the jigsaw, so you can build these timings into your critical path and have the facts when talking to key retail buyers.

Once you find a good manufacturer, it is worth building on the relationship and looking at it as a long term partnership instead of taking a short term view.   Sorcit has been working with many of its Chinese manufacturers for a number of years as we value trustworthiness, reliability, quality and communication just as much as getting a competitive price.   The more business we put with key manufacturers the better the relationship which in turns helps negotiations on leadtimes, price, etc.

More resources:

Look at www.sorcitproducts.com for more information about their services and to see examples of recent projects.

Read more about registering and protecting your product ideas in the Family Friendly Working Book.

For previous articles from David on Family Friendly Working see Protecting Your Idea and Creating A Prototype.

If you are developing a new product, a protytype can really help you work out costs and the likely market. In this article David Fannin of Sorcit has some tips to help you create a prototype.The next stage after your design has been protected is to create a physical sample.   In many cases a prototype can be made of your product, which is NOT necessarily made in the correct material for production, but will give a very good physical  indication as to the detail, size and overall look of the product you have designed.  It also  gives your potential manufacturer an idea of the amount of material required to produce the finished article and the size of the ACTUAL tooling to be used (if applicable) which can have a big implication on your overall costs.  In some circumstances factories may take the cost of these tools and amortise it over a certain volume/quantity of product; but in the majority of situations this has to be paid in advance to any production commencing.

Certain products can be prototyped very simply and quickly, for example textiles or stationary. Before a full production run, samples can be digitally printed to get an idea of how it will look.  Other products for example plastic items can be rapid prototyped from CAD drawings and made as a one-off piece, but if the product is large, it can be more difficult.

Whilst most prototyping is done in the factories where the manufacture is taking place, Sorcit have dedicated Prototyping factories in the Far East that specialise in creating one off items.  Often, these can be much more cost effective than UK prototyping, and we can help the development process in China, to ensure your product correct from the very outset.

Sorcit specialises in taking individuals ideas and developing them from concept through to manufacture.   Over the coming months, Sorcit will provide exclusive advice here on  Manufacture, Quality Control, Shipping/Logistics, Branding and Marketing/Promotion. Read more advice for developing a product ideas here.

More resources:

Look at www.sorcitproducts.com for more information about their services and to see examples of recent projects.

Read more about registering and protecting your product ideas in the Family Friendly Working Book.

Baby Loves Shopping

As more bright mums and dads experience ‘eureka’ moments whilst raising their children, the baby product sector is undergoing something of a revolution with parents bringing their practical inventions to market.  A brand new independent nursery store, Baby Loves Shopping (http://www.babylovesshopping.co.uk), has launched with the intention of making these exciting new products more readily available.

Baby Loves Shopping is the first UK retailer to stock the Snoozeshade, the country’s first universal blackout buggy blind.  In addition to this, it’s also one of the first stockists of the Pourty, the unique potty-that-pours, which proved a hit on ITV1’s This Morning earlier this month.

Joanne Waltham, founder of Baby Loves Shopping, comments, “Our overriding aim at Baby Loves Shopping is to stock stylish, practical and innovative products for babies, toddlers, expectant mothers and parents.  So it’s fantastic that we’ve been able to launch with such a solid range of new and unusual inventions, such as Snoozeshade and the Pourty.

“We also endeavour to offer ranges from smaller companies and genuine new inventions created by real mums and dads, for example, Mamascarf’s pioneering breastfeeding scarves and the Respisense portable baby breathing monitor.”

Baby Loves Shopping already stocks almost 100 different products and will add many more as it seeks out new and exceptional developments in the mother and baby arena.

Visit Baby Loves Shopping at http://www.babylovesshopping.co.uk.