Anybody who keep stuffed toys at home know how dirty those toys can get after a while. Especially in households with young children, those toys can get real filthy, real fast, and possibly pose as a health hazard.
But washing soft toys wrongly can damage, or worse, destroy them. Enter Teddy Needs A Bath! – it is a first-of-its-kind washer and dryer bag for stuffed toys, allowing you to safely wash them (and get rid of those germs, bacteria, lice and dust mites), as well as keeps them protected.
Teddy Needs A Bath! is founded by Nicole Townend, who decided to invent the bag because she needed a product like it and couldn’t find something that met her needs.
Being A Mompreneur
“I guess you could say it was one of those “Ah-Ha!” moments,” says Townend. “As a mother myself, I am so excited to share this much needed product with fellow parents,” adds the mompreneur. “After a year of product testing and hundreds of plush toys later, Teddy Needs A Bath! has been perfected to wash all sizes, shapes and materials of toys.”
Townend, who’s married to professional skater Tosh Townend, shares that she decided to start her own business as she’s “always been a risk taker”. “And I was a new mom. So it just seemed easy enough to at least give it a shot and see what happened. I had the time on my hands. And boy, does it take time.”
She likes that with Teddy Needs A Bath! they are identifying and providing a solution to a problem they know every parent faces. “Many parents tell me they have never washed their kid’s stuffed toys. And since starting this company, I have learned some appalling statistics on what is living in those teddies!”
The biggest challenge she faced in her journey as an entrepreneur was trying to juggle every aspect of running a business. In many cases, she says, she has had to learn the hard way. “I could write a tiny book on how to do a start up step-by-step to save people the hassles I’ve had,” she laughs. “For example, where to go for UPC codes – there are so many scam companies out there!”
Townend has this piece of advice for aspiring entrepreneurs. “If you are going to start something right now in this poor economy, be sure it is original and you have no competition in your perceived market,” Townend insists.
“That’s the ticket. That is what I attribute my rapid growth to.”
