Designer Diaper Bags

Christie Rein was tired of carrying diapers around in a freezer bag. The 34-year-old mother of three found herself constantly stuffing diapers for her infant son into freezer bags to keep them from getting scrunched up in her purse. Rein wanted something that was compact, sleek and stylish, so in November 2004, she sat down with her husband, Marcus, who helped her design a custom diaper bag that's big enough to hold a travel pack of wipes and two to four diapers. With more than $180,000 in sales for 2005, Christie's company, Diapees & Wipees, has bags in 22 different styles, available online and in 120 boutiques across the globe for $14.99.

http://www.diapeesandwipees.com/

Mommy Makes Money

What: Clothing for newborns packaged as a bouquet for the new mom

Who: Bryony Boxer and Simon Martin of The Baby Bunch

Where: New York City

When: Started in 2006Startup costs: $250,000

Before visiting a new mom in the hospital, family and friends often get flowers for her or a gift for the baby. Thanks to The Baby Bunch, they can do both at once.

When Bryony Boxer, 33, was pregnant with her first child, she says she noticed a "shortage of products in the market that were gifts for the mom and the baby at the same time." She also saw people becoming increasingly busy and putting less thought into gift-giving. So she and her husband, Simon Martin, 36, came up with a practical, convenient gift idea: infant clothing packaged in the form of an attractive bouquet that could be purchased online and sent directly to the recipient. Offered in various sizes and styles, the bunches include bibs, socks, T-shirts and onesies. The filler flowers, made from wood and paper, can be saved for display, and the gift box is reusable.

"The idea of using everything in it--not just having superfluous packaging--is important to us," says Boxer.

Expanding on its practical, economical and eco-friendly thinking, The Baby Bunch recently launched a line of organic bouquets, which earned the company the 2007 Innovation Award from the Juvenile Product Manufacturers Association.
Although the couple's 2-year-old son has outgrown the line's infant clothing, the company still has lots of room to grow. Projecting $1 million in sales for 2007, the couple plans to create gift bouquets for other occasions and age groups

[Via - Entrepreneur Magazine]

Don't give up on your business!

By Kelly McCausey

Summer must be when many work at home Mom start to think that their business is a flop and begin to look for a new opportunity. This is fine if your business is truly a flop - but chances are, you just need to take a look at it from a fresh perspective.
It will always be easier to give a present business a fresh effort than to start all over.

Here are three very good reasons why:

Reason #1 - You will earn Respect. When you stick with something, you develop respect from others. When you flit from one opportunity to another you will be viewed with some sceptisism from others who will wonder how long you'll last with the new business before changing again!

Reason #2 - You will earn Product Recognition. How many times do we have to read it? The business experts all say it takes two years to really get a business off the ground. So why do we give up so easily after just two months? When we keep grounded and keeping working the business we have, we begin to be recognized for our product. This is true locally and online. There are so many online WAHMs who when I see them, I think of their product.
Reason #3 - It's Financial Smart. Instead of investing $100 to $300 or more into a new business, invest that into a really good marketing effort. Reach a new group of people! Sponsor a great event or contest that will reach new potential customers.

The key here is to really brainstorm! Imagine that you are starting a new business, what is it that you would do to get the word out? Now just do it for your present business! LOL! It's so simple that many WAHMs miss it. Don't waste all the energy on starting over - apply it to what you already know about.

Kelly McCausey hosts Work at Home Moms Talk Radio Listen while you work! http://www.wahmtalkradio.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kelly_McCausey

Good things happen when.....

Valeri Love-Author/Life Coach/Motivational Speaker

Valerie Love is a public speaker, author, and the president and founder of The Power of Love Worldwide, a ministry that teaches others how to use the power of love to become the most magnificent and excellent version of themselves that is possible.

Valerie has been a guest speaker at American Express, Rock International Church, Financial Destination Inc., United Faith Church of Deliverance (2006 Women’s Conference), FEW (Federally Employed Women), Life International Ministries, Booz Allen & Hamilton, and more.

She is currently studying under spiritual life counselor and author, Iyanla Vanzant, at the Inner Visions Institute for Spiritual Development, pursuing a certification as a spiritual life coach. She will complete the program in 2008. Valerie lives in the Washington, DC metropolitan area with her husband and three of the couple's four children.



Valerie when did you cath the entrepreneurial bug?

I began as a teenager when I did babysitting and found that I loved offering a
service and being compensated for it. I watched kids and the parents (who
were friends of my parents) paid me. It was my first taste of using my natural
abilities to make money.

Since then I've owned and operated several businesses, including a newspaper
distributorship, a financial planning practice, and most recently, a large and thriving network marketing business.

What would you say was your biggest challenges:

The biggest challenge has been managing my own mind and my emotions.
Setbacks are typical in business, and managing emotional ups and downs
is critical to success. Some of the things that happen in business don't feel
good, but they all turn out to be valuable lessons in the long run.
Managing my mind is critical to success also, as the mind creates reality.

What was the best discovery that you made in the course of business, that you wish you would have done in the beginning?

Build solid relationships and keep all contacts in a database that allows
you to reach out and touch your contacts often. This enables you to keep
your business at the top of your prospects' minds. When they need your
product or service, they'll turn to you first if you've done a good job of
keeping in contact with them. Don't just bug people, find a way to offer
valuable little tidbits when you reach out to them. Make the contact
valuable to the consumer, not just a way to advertise to them.

What is the thing that you would never advise a person to do in there business

Never procrastinate! I've learned to move ahead even when I don't have
ideal circumstances. So many people never pull the trigger because they
are waiting for things to be perfect. Perfect circumstances never come,
they are created.

When did you realize your gift and that you could get paid for it?

I've know since grade school that I was talented with speaking and writing. My teachers wanted to skip me because my reading level was always so much higher than the grade I was in. When I got to high school, one of my teachers was so impressed with my writing and she told me so. I began to take my writing seriously and wrote for the school paper and the yearbooks.My writing was written up in the New York Times when I was a teenager under the heading "Great Writing by Young People". It was a thrill. Today, it's a thrill to know that soon my books
will be in the hands of people everywhere. It is a lifelong dream.

Why do you think life coaching is so important for entrpreneurs?

I am being coached, even though I am a Life Coach. Everyone needs three major benefits from coaching:

1. mapping out an action plan for life by clearly defining exactly what you want based upon who you are;
2. being shown that our potential is so much more than
we may currently realize;
3. being held accountable to reach the dreams we say we want.

Coaching is critical to advancement in any and every phase of life. Every successful person I know had mentors and coaches
along the way. It is impossible to reach all of your dreams and
desires completely on your own.

I have been mentored and coached for years, and I will continue to be both a coach and a client. Coaching is invaluable!

Valerie Love how do you define success?

I define success as having the 7 F's of life. I am developing this into a workshop that will be offered soon:
1. Family -- including intimate relationships
2. Friends -- satisfying relationships
3. Fulfillment -- living your Divine Life's Purpose and using it to touch others's lives
4. Fun -- knowing how to relax and give yourself pleasure
5. Fruitfulness -- having enough money/resources to meet all your needs and enough to build reserves to help others who you feel led to assist.
6. Fitness -- having a healthy body that is energetic
7. Faith -- the most important aspect of all: your spirituality

We truly can have it all.

Thank you Valerie for taking time to speak with us here at Just Leap.

If you are interested in participating in one of Valerie Loves retreats, you can go to elephantfinancialgroup. I have been to three of them and I must say they are life changing. Valerie challenges you to be the you , you were put here to be.

Never Let the Odds...

www.quotablecards.com

Dionne Green- Susej Designs

Dionne Green, creator of Susej Designs, was born in San Antonio, Texas. As the daughter of military parents, she spent most of her childhood traveling the world. During her teens, Green moved to El Paso, Texas and enrolled at the University of Texas at El Paso, initially taking up courses in accounting.

Growing up, Green always knew she wanted to work in fashion, and later transferred to Howard University in Washington, D.C. to study fashion merchandising. It was during her time at Howard that Green discovered her passion for illustration. She later redirected her studies abroad to concentrate on fashion design at the renowned Istituto Marangoni in Milan, Italy, one of Europe's leading Fashion and Design schools. Here, her enthusiasm and natural ability was fully developed as she learned the art of illustration and the skills required to build a collection.
Upon completion of her studies, she returned to Washington, D.C. with a remarkable portfolio and a wealth of knowledge. Green wanted to combine her designs with something that women could take pride in and appreciate; from that Susej Designs was born.

Dionne Green is the sole creator and developer for Susej Designs. In the future, Green plans to offer women's clothing and other accessories.

Dionne how did you get started ?
The bags pretty much were a spin off of T-Shirts. In experimenting with different styles of T-shirts. A friend said these are sooooo beautiful you should put these on bags for women.

Susej Design. How did you come up with that name and what does it mean?
Susej is Jesus spelled backwards. It is my thank you to Jesus Christ for blessing me with Susej Design and allowing me to do what I love.

Where you working for anyone when you started your business?
I was working for an optometrist for about a year by day and working on sample bags at night. It eventually got to a point where I knew I had to leave in order to let my business grow.

Do you remember your first client?
Yes I do. Her name was Sandy. It was my first day at Eastern Market in DC(high end flee market) . Just seeing the looks on peoples faces as they saw my bags for the first time was good for my heart, it let me know I was moving in the right direction. The first customer that saw my bag was Sandy, she looked at the bag and loved it however she said she wanted to think about it. Sandy went away for about an hour. When she came back I was sooooooooooooo excited. While she was away she said something told her to come back and get that bag before she went out of town. While packaging the bag I pulled a string of beads off the bag. Sandy was great about the whole thing, she said I could just repair it when she got back in town. She was a great first customer.

How do you come up with the names for the bags?
Sometimes the names will inspire the design. Tangled Tool came from a quote "Leave life's Tangles to God". It's symbolic, she is sitting on life's twist and turns. The skirt of her dress represents lifes twist and turns.

Some of the other names are Solid Gold, Sweet Summer and Blond Ambition, to name a few...

What is your Biggest challenge?
Looking for the right people to work with me. This is my baby. You pray that leaving things in the next persons hands are the right hands

The best discovery that you made in the course of business, that you wish you would have done in the beginning?
Is knowing that the strength that I thought I had , I really have it. I can think a thing is possible and it come to life.

The thing that you would never advise a person to do in their business:
Don't limit your business. My business is based in the DC area. But I get orders from around the world. You want a business without walls , no limitations.

How do you define success
Just doing what makes you happy

Dionne has also been featured in Upscale Magazine ,Feb 2006, The Examiner, and other fashion publications. She is most recently featured in the Baltimore Sun this month.

Thank you Dionne for talking to us and many blessing to you and your business