Rumina Natural Care are the New Zealand distributors for NUK, creators of innovative baby feeding aids and other baby care products. The history of NUK is long and exciting, from inventing the original NUK Teat, inspired by Mother Nature, to today’s vast range of baby care products, each designed to make life that bit easier for parents and children. Rumina are also distributors for Belly Bandit (the top post-pregnancy shape wear) and Tidy Tot (ingenious bib solutions). We spoke to Sheryl Service from Rumina Natural Care to learn more about how they got started.
The passion: What inspired you to set up your business?
I had been working for the New Zealand distributors of NUK for several years and knew what a wonderful range it was, with each product having been designed in collaboration with orthodontists, midwives, nutritionists, or medical experts. A year or so after I left there, the German manufacturers asked me to take over distribution and take NUK to the next level in New Zealand, as it is a market leader in many countries around the world. I had such a passion for the brand that it didn’t take long to make the decision to set up our business.
The Launch: How did you start out in the beginning?
We basically had to start again from scratch, getting all the majors stores to stock NUK. We started very small with just my husband and me. As a typical NZ business we did everything ourselves from relabeling packaging, to store visits, to picking and packing, marketing… everything. NUK started off with infant feeding products and oral care, however their range has grown extensively over the last sixty years and in the past eight years we have distributed NUK we have also taken on more and more of their range.
The innovation: What was the biggest breakthrough for you with your business?
We were lucky and grateful that the big baby stores took on NUK and pharmacies, where NUK was first sold, have also been very supportive, so NUK is now sold even in small towns throughout New Zealand.
The main hospitals in New Zealand also use NUK MedicPro products, which are mostly the same thing as the retail products, but pre-sterilised and ready to use for pre-term babies or babies needing extra support in feeding.
All products are so well designed and the highest quality, it doesn’t take long for parents to spread the word, and before long we had to keep increasing our staff. Having every new staff member passionate about babies and our products, has been a huge help. They were soon recommending other brands for us to distribute, although NUK is still our first baby.
