Janneke Williamson’s business idea attracts more than 55k social media followers
A mother-of-two has grown her business from operating in her basement to having a retail store in Noosa Junction and a warehouse with nine employees. Here is how she did it.
Business
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A “light bulb moment” during a frantic morning drop-off led to a Noosa mum starting an innovative business that now has 55,000 TikTok and 23,000 Instagram followers.
Since launching the mumsie in 2018, mother-of-two Janneke Williamson’s innovative idea has grown into an international business.
The mumsie is the ultimate outfit for parents that incorporates a baby carrier into comfortable overalls allowing for easy hands free moments with children.
Ms Williamson said the idea was born out of need.
“I had a three-month-old girl, and I was at kindy drop off for my son, who was four and … I was juggling lunch boxes, school bags, hats, shoes, handbag, phone, dummy, sanity while fumbling with a baby carrier,” she said.
“I was a bit flustered, and I looked down at my overalls and thought why I can’t just put my baby in here for a few minutes and that was a light bulb moment and then I went home and … was surprised that they hadn’t been done before.”
The mumsie is safety tested and can be worn throughout pregnancy and post-partum.
After going through the design process, Mrs Williamson used social media to grow the business from operating in her basement to now having a retail store in Noosa Junction and a warehouse with nine employees.
“We have 23,000 followers on Instagram and 55, 000 on TikTok,” she said.
“It’s amazing to have such an amazing community online and myself and the team connect with the community on a daily basis,” she said.
“It’s been amazing to be able to build something that is beyond just a product, the community is special to me.”
Mrs Williamson said majority of her sales are from overseas customers.
“Only 20 per cent of our customers are in Australia, maybe less and that’s thanks to social media,” she said.
“We get shares from customers on the top of the Eiffel Tower, in Alaska, in America, Asia all different parts of the world, it’s so exciting to see your product getting across the globe.”
Mrs Williamson said helping mums in their sometimes-frantic role was close to her heart and she loved seeing her customers share their happy moments.
“I know what the juggle is like and just being able to help people with something that is stylish, cool practical but also giving them that hands free moments that makes their life a bit easier as well as giving them that special bond with their child … makes me feel so great,” she said.
The mumsie owner worked in TV before starting the successful business and said she had to overcome numerous obstacles on her journey.
“I didn’t have any experience in running a business or manufacturing or fashion or any of the logistics so that has been a massive learning curve for me,” she said.
“I had no idea what running a business like this with two kids would be like and that’s been a challenge in itself.”
The mumsie has also launched the mumsie Blog where writer Rebecca Walker talks all things mums and bubs.
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