kidbean

KidBean.com began in 1999 while founder Melissa Zenz was pregnant with her first child. As a vegetarian, passionate environmentalist and social activist, Melissa grew increasingly frustrated with the distinct absence in the marketplace of maternity and baby products that were earth-friendly, labor-friendly, and vegan. Products that were "vegan" were often made with plastic and questionable or unfair labor. "Earth-friendly" products were not necessarily vegan and also may have been made with unfair labor. "Labor-friendly" products were not necessarily vegan or earth-friendly. With a great deal of research she did find products here and there that met her criteria, but recognized the impracticability of consumers spending as much time on research as she did and then purchasing from so many different stores.

Melissa remembers very clearly a meeting she had with her boss during that time. It was in the third trimester of her pregnancy, just after she had moved her office to her home so she could maintain her 50+ hours/week schedule. Her boss was concerned about Melissa maintaining her managerial duties after her baby was born, and Melissa assured her she would be back at work full-time within a week after the birth. (Yes, Melissa is a recovering workaholic!)

When the time came, Melissa's daughter was born by an emergency C-section. As so many of you have discovered when you became parents yourselves, children have a powerful way of changing your priorities in life. Within weeks after her daughter Sara's birth, Melissa quit her job because she realized that her duties as a mother were far more important.

In the fall of 1999, shortly after the birth of her daughter, Melissa began work on the first business plan for KidBean.com. She sought to create an online store where every product met her 3 main criteria of being earth-friendly, labor-friendly, and vegan. The plan additionally called for abundant options within product categories, whenever possible, so consumers would be able to choose from several brands of baby rattles, for example. Lastly, the plan included the lofty goal of offering a product selection diverse enough for the store to be considered a "one-stop shop", hardly a small task at the time.

Nearly 9 years later, Melissa has been successful in achieving all of her original goals with KidBean.com. The company has grown from its launch online in 2003 with just over 200 products to its current selection of over 750 products and a well-established market presence. When products could not be found that met the company's criteria, Melissa has been able to manufacture them and the company now has an increasing line of its own eclectic selection of branded products. With the addition of exclusive distributor contracts, KidBean.com has also ventured into the wholesale market with retailers all over the world.

The most amazing part of this story is that it was all done by just one woman. Until the spring of 2008, Melissa had perfomed every function in her business herself: from web designer to copywriter to customer service to warehouse management to customs to marketing to accounting and many, many other duties that go with running your own business. In 2008, Melissa will finally have some much-needed help and hopes to enjoy a well-deserved break with her family. 

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