Entrepreneur: Judy Pettersen

Business: BabyTrekker baby carriers are the most comfortable and versatile baby carrier you'll ever wear.

www.babytrekker.com

What It Is:  The BabyTrekker is a five position very comfortable carrier that holds babies from 8 to 40 lbs.  Parents can wear their babies on their front or back, facing in or out, plus nurse in the carrier.

How It Came to Be: My first daughter was such an easy baby and toddler that my husband and I were convinced that we were perfect parents.  Then, baby Michelle cam along and introduced us to reality parenting.  She was very fussy and had such an intense need to be held that I literally could not put her down.  I tried carriers on the market and some homemade ones from friends but couldn’t find anything comfortable enough to wear all day or versatile enough to keep Michelle happy.  I designed the BabyTrekker by thinking about everything I would love to have in a baby carrier.  Moms and dads in my community loved it, but I realized I had a future business on my hands while on a family vacation to Banff, Alberta.  I was literally taking orders on the streets from strangers from around the world.  By the time my third daughter was born, I had hired my first seamstress and began manufacturing the BabyTrekker in our small community of Flin Flon.  I operated as a home business for 9 years and then moved our operations to another building with office space, a shipping room and a small factory.

My Biggest Challenge: After a few years in business, I learned to write my long and short term goals and objectives down and have a completion date beside them.  Otherwise, great ideas fall by the wayside, and opportunities can be wasted.

Advice to Other Mompreneurs:  You’re not going to have a traditional pension, so start putting away a little money each month, and don’t use it for anything else!

Life Lesson Learned:  Human babies are mammals and need to be held a lot, whether they express it or not.  If you hold your baby for extended periods of time, you will create children who have strong self esteem, empathy and a deep connection to others.

What I still Love About my Business: Being in touch with parents from around the world.  We all love our children and need daily support from other parents in our day to day challenges.  I treasure the mail I’ve received over the years.  I also enjoy the independence of working for myself, though it does take discipline to put my work hat on every day, especially while my business was at home.

I also love the fact that my husband and three children worked with me at various times.  My husband took a year from teaching to help get things going.  My oldest daughter Hilary helps with sales and trade shows, Michelle models for me, and Mari is training to be a shipper over the summer. 

www.babytrekker.com - shop on-line
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or phone 1-800-665-3957.