Love and Leadership at KIDShow, Las Vegas
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This February, with celebrations of Valentine’s Day and Presidents’ Day, thoughts turn to personal achievements, leadership and, most of all, the loves and motivating passions of our lives. Passion, leadership and love for the children’s industry can all be found at KIDShow Las Vegas, at Bally’s on February 17-19, 2014.
A sampling of KIDShow exhibitors shared with me about their own personal passions and what motivates them to be a leader in the children’s business. Given that children are part of both our personal and professional lives in this business, it’s not surprising that so many include their children, whether still at home or adults, as what brings love and purpose to their lives. These brands will be among those celebrating children at KIDShow Las Vegas: No Slippy Hair Clippy, CIRCUS 212, Le Top/Rabbitmoon, Coral & Reef, and Wee Ones.
No Slippy Hair Clippy
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What are you most passionate about in your life?
Our passion outside of running No Slippy Hair Clippy is singing/writing songs! My husband is an accomplished musician and producer, so we have lots of fun in our studio… can’t wait to finish recording our album of songs!
What is your finest achievement in the children’s industry?
Our finest achievement is launching No Slippy Hair Clippy from a dining room table back in 2002; touching so many moms and parents in the world, and bringing them joy. Now baby girls can look like baby girls, no matter how little hair. We’re the very first no-slip hair clip in the world… that takes leadership!
hairclippy.com
CIRCUS 212
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What are you most passionate about in your life?
Design is not only my profession, it is my passion. My education and work experience have allowed me to pursue design projects in different areas outside of my normal scope. For instance, the Museum of Finnish Architecture recently asked me to collaborate on a project that explores the interpretation of space from two culturally different perspectives. I assembled a team to create a bamboo structure, which will be part of a display at the Biennale for Urbanism and Architecture in Shenzhen, China during the first quarter of 2014, and beginning in June 2014, representing Finland at the International Architecture Exhibition in Venice, Italy.
What is your finest achievement in the children’s industry?
CIRCUS 212 is committed to remaining unique and producing “I-have-to-have-that” items. We will continue to create collections that will stand up to the test of time, without following the latest trend or fad.
Le Top and Rabbitmoon
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What are you most passionate about in your life?
Paul and I (Chris Lun) founded this business together as a family and find that Le Top is our greatest accomplishment aside from our children. Outside of work, we love being with our three children (Betsy, 43, Lenny, 40, and Melissa, 32) and two grandchildren (Otto, 9 and Wade, 7) with two baby boys on the way this April 2014. We live in a phili-archal family where we live for and are motivated by our children. We truly appreciate their values and are proud of the adults they have become. Each of our children have worked at Le Top in their career journeys and have made meaningful impacts on our “family-owned” company. We also enjoy occasional trips to Napa for wine tasting!
What is your finest achievement in the children’s industry?
Our finest achievement in the children’s industry is to be able to celebrate Le Top’s 35th anniversary this year. We are proud to celebrate our anniversary with classic silhouettes featuring iconic prints and whimsical appliqués that are true to our clothing’s heritage in our Fall 2014 collection.
It’s hard to believe that Le Top was originally founded almost by accident. In many ways Paul was a leader in the children’s business going back to 1978, when he, whose family had already been in the apparel business in Hong Kong and Malaysia for over 50 years, was earning his master’s degree in finance in California. As a natural entrepreneur, he jumped at his brother’s suggestion that he jumpstart his finance career by selling some of the family’s novelty T-shirts in the U.S.
In those days, people were tiring of the polyester-infused ’70s, and Paul’s thick, quality combed cotton interlock shirts were a welcomed change. To this day Le Top is still known for the soft, natural fiber fabrics that we design and manufacture ourselves.
Paul wasn’t just an ambitious entrepreneur; he was also the creative spark behind the Le Top brand. As the company’s original designer, “My First Jeans” was his initial experimental design. It was a big hit, and the prototype still hangs, proudly framed, in our living room.
Coral & Reef Beachwear
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What are you most passionate about in your life?
I love designing surf and swimwear, while living the island dream in Hawaii. Outside of work, I enjoy surfing on the weekends with family and friends.
What is your finest achievement in the children’s industry?
Coral & Reef’s finest achievement is understanding our product and its purpose with our core customer base. We listen to their input and ideas to create a final product that best meets the needs of our retailers and their satisfied customers. Our sales department and marketing team has spent many years establishing our company and studying the trends as they come and go. Knowing the direction our industry is heading in the marketplace and forecasting upcoming trends guides us in designing only our collection with the freshest looks. We ask children if they would buy our collection of surf, swim, beach and resortwear. We work to stay cool, fresh and vibrant! We have the research and design process down to a science that works. We believe we are one of only a few brands in the surf and swim market that others can’t match.
Wee Ones
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What are you most passionate about in your life?
Miles and I are most passionate about our kids, who are now ages 18 and 21. We love spending time with them, and helping them to become successful and happy in their lives. Outside of work, we love to travel, cook and make time for family and friends!
What is your finest achievement in the children’s industry?
Wee Ones has been a leader in the girls hair accessory business for almost 30 years! We pride ourselves on fine quality, on-trend designs and great customer service. Last season, we added the WeeStay No-Slip Clip to our seasonal and basic styles. Speaking of our customers, they have made us a leader in the business, and for that we are very grateful. A very loyal customer base is our finest achievement!
What are you passionate about in life? How are you a leader in the children’s industry? Let us know in comments below.
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