myWallaby is Made for Dolls On-the-Go!
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Here’s a sweet success story, inspired by both the fond childhood memories of a friend, and the wallabies who carry their young in a front-facing pouch! Eric says, “The same night we decided on the name myWallaby, we learned that Miriam was pregnant!” Miriam continues, “Given the ever-expanding shape of my belly during the months that myWallaby started to take shape, we can’t help but think that my growing belly was at least in part some inspiration for the myWallaby pouch!” Eric and Myriam share with The Giggle Guide® how it all began and how their myWallaby Agile Doll Carrier has grown, along with their daughter.
When was your brand born, and what was the initial inspiration?
“myWallaby was born in early 2008 when a close friend of ours showed us a photo album that contained pictures from her childhood. One object appeared in several pictures – a little blue messenger bag that she described as her favorite childhood possession. The bag caught our attention and while walking around the streets of NYC, we noticed that a lot of young girls were carrying around dolls in their hands or stuffing them into bags that were really not designed to carry dolls. We started to think we might be on to something – what if we created a purse that could also carry dolls? myWallaby was born…
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What was your experience prior to the brand launch?
“While we have tinkered with various startups in the past, myWallaby is the first time we have actually accomplished bringing a product all the way to market. As far as our work experience goes, Myriam practices immigration law and I work in the financial industry. Suffice it to say that our backgrounds are atypical for founders of a toy/fashion company. Perhaps it is the very nature of our jobs that has spurred us on to seek a creative outlet through myWallaby.
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What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting?
“While the biggest hurdle has probably been building myWallaby while at the same time juggling two full-time jobs and Myriam’s pregnancy, a close second would be hiring consultants and companies without ever being able to meet them face to face. We are proud of the fact that the myWallaby Agile Doll Carrier was developed and manufactured with the assistance of people who live in California, Georgia, Indiana, Maine, New York, South Dakota, Virginia and Washington. .
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What is one thing you would have done differently?
“When we produced our final sample bags, we inadvertently used fabric colors that were seasonal. By the time we were ready to begin manufacturing, almost all of our initial color choices had been discontinued. To avoid having to redo both the care instruction label (which by law has to list the materials used in the product) and all of the photos we had taken for our online store, we had to delay our launch several weeks while we hunted down replacement fabric. In the end, we found a different company to produce our fabric, but the process taught us an important lesson.
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What do you feel are the three biggest keys to your success?
“While we just launched our product, we already consider ourselves successful in that our product has made it to market and has already garnered positive reviews and sales. With that in mind, we feel that the following have been keys to our success:
- Breaking the development plan up into little challenges and mini victories.
- Not rushing the design process. (Sometimes you have to take a few steps back to move forward.)
- Knowing what we could handle ourselves and what areas we needed to spend our precious startup dollars on getting assistance.
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Describe a typical new product development cycle for your business?
“Since we have only developed one product so far, we wouldn’t exactly call it a typical development cycle. However, a key component is to test, retest and make modifications. It took us over a year and a half and nine prototypes to develop the myWallaby Agile Doll Carrier. It is painful, but sometimes the best design enhancements come from cutting up an expensive prototype just to see how all the pieces function ‘under the hood.’
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Do “green” or eco-friendly concerns weigh into your business decisions, and if so, how?
“Yes, besides quality control, one of the reasons we chose to manufacture our product in the US was to cut down on the shipping distances our product would travel prior to arriving at the consumer’s home. We even worked out a special deal with our manufacturer to package and drop ship our product directly to the consumer, thereby eliminating two typical shipping stages.
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What is one new trend you’re seeing in the marketplace?
“Surprisingly, even during this latest down market, we are continuing to see more consumers limiting the amount of items they purchase in order to buy fewer, high-quality objects. American Girl is still going strong even in these trying times.
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What types of marketing have been most effective for your business?
“Blog reviews and giveaways have been a very effective way of getting the word out about our product. Everyone loves contests, and the Web is the ultimate way to get potential consumers involved with marketing the product.
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How does your business make use of the Internet?
“myWallaby does not just make use of the Internet, it is based entirely on the Internet. Not only did we use the Internet to help develop our product, so far we have exclusively used it to market, advertise and sell our product. The next step is to build retail business. We invite retailers to contact us regarding wholesale opportunities. myWallaby is currently available on our Web site (www.mywallaby.com) and at Amazon.com.
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What is the biggest challenge your business faces today?
“While the Internet has been great for advancing our business quickly and cost-effectively, its biggest drawback is that people can’t simply reach out and touch our product. This is one advantage to rolling a product out in stores. At some point there will be enough kids using our product to ‘seed’ the market, but for now, we just need to focus on getting our bag in the hands of the right early-adopters.
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What is one change/addition that’s had a positive impact for your business in the last year?
“Having a baby girl. While our little darling has caused quite a few sleepless nights, she has helped us ten fold by enabling us to focus on what is most important in life. This has allowed us to take business setbacks in stride. In the end, while something may not go entirely the way we have envisioned, just one look into our daughter’s baby blues provides just the right amount of positive energy we need to take that important next step.
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What is your one piece of advice for someone entering the children’s market?
“Go with your gut. It is an obvious fact that all of us were kids at one point in our lives. While the toys may have become more and more advanced, the principles of play have not. That is not to say that someone who is starting a children’s company need not get feedback from kids through focus groups, etc., it just means that we would recommend looking at your creation through your own inner child. For example, we are still amazed when we see competitors making doll carriers in which the doll is stored behind the girl and the doll is completely hidden or facing behind. From day one we knew that a girl would get more enjoyment from having the doll face forward, thereby enabling the doll to ‘see’ everything that its owner experiences. We didn’t need a focus group to figure that out — it was there right inside us.
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More About myWallaby
The myWallaby Agile Doll Carrier is the first girl’s bag that can be used as both a purse and a doll carrier. It can carry a variety of dolls and stuffed animals, ranging in size from 12 to 18 inches. Easily converts from a purse to a doll carrier in seconds.
Most of the outside of the myWallaby Agile bag is durably constructed of soft canvas ply. The bottom of the bag and the strap are made of a special suede-like microfiber blend that not only looks good, it feels great. The bag includes a zippered, satin-lined pouch in the front. The main compartment features a magnetic snap, and can hold larger items. Finally, the versatile doll pocket can be folded and tucked under the pouch, ready to transport a favorite doll or stuffed animal. An adjustable padded strap completes the finishing touches for comfort and convenience.
myWallaby is available in five fashionable color combinations: cotton candy, isle of capri, sunshine surprise, pine cone and blue topaz. All retail for $49.99 each. (Dolls not included.)
Award-Winning Product
myWallaby Agile Doll Carrier was chosen as Dr. Toy’s “Best Picks Children’s Products for 2009.”
myWallaby has also been selected as one of only eleven “Hot New Toys for Girls — Top Picks for Christmas Gifts” by Kristen Ryan, About.com’s official Toy Guide.
For more information, visit www.mywallaby.com
The Giggle Guide™ ongoing series, “Behind the Brand” looks at both brand leaders and budding brands. What brand would you like to hear more about? Let us know! Editorial Director David Gaunt, .
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