4 Stories of Michigan Mom-Developed Products
Bring your lunch and hear regional experts share experience, advice, and lessons from their profession on April 26 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Start Garden 50 Louis Ave First Floor Grand Rapids.
Veronica Vroon, Stacey Feeley, Sue Kellogg, and Deb Weiss are all terrific examples of moms who were unsatisfied with the options and quality of products and programs being sold for their kids, so they decided to do something about it. Join us on Friday, April 26 to hear first hand how Pure Bar, SiliKids, Sing Song Yoga, and NawGum got their start.
Veronica Bosgraaf
Veronica Bosgraaf was inspired to make the Pure Bar in her kitchen, when her six year old daughter declared herself a vegetarian. She created, Pure Bar—a nutrition bar made with whole, simple, raw, and organic ingredients that would meet her needs for protein, fiber, omega three fats, and antioxidants. Veronica started the company in 2006; Pure Bar is now sold nationwide at Whole Foods, Trader Joes and lots of other awesome retailers natural and conventional.
Stacey Feeley
Silikids began in 2006 as a labor of love for two friends and mothers, Stacey Feeley and Giuliana Schwab. With growing concerns about toxic materials in children’s products, Silikids was born. It is a children’s accessory company dedicated to making safe, clean, and hygienic products out of silicone. Silikids makes a variety of products ranging from kneepads for crawling babies, silicone sleeves for glass baby bottles, jars and containers as well as glass cups for kids and adults protected by their patent pending Siliskin. Through trial and error, blood, sweat, and tears the Silikids founders continue to innovate and launch new products.
Deb Weiss
When Deb Weiss-Gelmi’s daughter was preschool age, she searched for a local kid’s yoga program or a good DVD and found neither. So with her experience as a school teacher, her years in yoga and her degree in child development, she created Sing Song Yoga—a childrens’ musical yoga program in which song lyrics instruct children how to get into the poses. Sing Song Yoga has a beautifully produced DVD and will soon be launching the first of its kind, completely customizable iPad and iPhone App. Deb has thoroughly enjoyed each step on the path to calling herself an entrepreneur.
Sue Kellogg
Sue Kellogg is a mom and business entrepreneur based in Traverse City, Michigan. As a stay at home mom, she struggled with finding certain child based products to properly fit the growing phases of her daughter Tenley. Always a "doer" and rarely a talker, she started her own holding company, Mello & Company, to help launch the children products she invents. Sue’s first product is an all in one teether called Nawgum.
Source: Start Garden
