When someone buys at the teething co, what do you want them to tell their friends?
They have some great products, and you should follow them, LOL. The teether was packed nicely, it was delivered on time, and it was great supporting a mum’s small business. My child loves to play with their teether. I can take it anywhere, it’s easy to clean, and it’s one of those things you always want to have carried around in your bag. Oh, and we were friendly, fun and fantastic to deal with.
How do you balance work and family?
I schedule time as best as I can. Usually, at night, I wrap any orders to give to my husband to post the next day. The big game changer was when I started to plan all of my content for social media. I designed it basically for twelve months with what I wanted to include, then I broke it down quarterly and monthly. At the beginning of every month, I set it out. It has made everything so much easier. I am no longer sitting there every day thinking about what I will post, and now I can focus on learning how to do reels and other social content like TikTok. As a result, I have more time with my family.
What challenges have you had to overcome?
So many, like building the website using Shopify from the ground up and figuring everything out that I’ve never done before. Now and then, you feel like giving up, and then someone will post a comment or send through a review on a purchased product, and it’s good. It has been a challenge the last few months with the current economic environment, so we have completed different campaigns specifically for our VIP customers who are registered to receive our newsletter; the response has been great, with plenty of customers returning to pick up another teether and trying different products as we grow into them. So many teethers go missing under the couch, LOL! We are always looking to improve and get better at what we do daily.
What are the pros and cons of running your own business?
It has given us an additional income and helps us plan for the future to be able to look after the family. I love learning, and The Teething Co has given me a better understanding of how businesses operate and how some do it well and others don’t. I love supporting other businesses. I would prefer to support another small mum’s business rather than go and buy it from a big company, and there are so many different brands doing great things. It is a real community. On the other hand, running a small business can be stressful. You must assess what you can do and determine where things need to happen and what will come in the future.
So what’s next for The Teething Co?
As Eleanor is growing and evolving, The Teething Co grows and develops. We are trialling a childcare specific range that we offer to childcare centres across Australia, which allows them access to great silicone toys for their kids to learn, develop, grow and play with, all from a single trusted source, The Teething Co. We offer “Raise”, which raises much-needed funds for childcare centres and allows families to purchase teethers with funds going back into the childcare centre to upgrade equipment. Our customers also love pets, specifically dogs, so we launched our Puppy Chewz range which continually evolves. We want to continue to focus on being a resource and guide for mums about teething where we partner with experts that give our customers the right advice, all in one place. We will continue to be fun and genuine and stand by everything we partner with. The future is exciting!
Visit The Teething Co website to find out more and to shop their range. You can also connect with them on Facebook and Instagram.
