What do Sarah Jessica Parker, Chad Lowe and Penelope Ann Miller have in common?
What do Sarah Jessica Parker, Chad Lowe and Penelope Ann Miller have in common?
How about CNN Anchor Dan Senor, Hank Azaria from "Night at the Museum" and Jonathan Cake from "Law and Order?"
It's Ticklebug Baby!
Now if you worked at St. Margaret Mercy, you'd likely know about this baby product invention of employee Kathi Pavlou and her daughter Kristina, who now lives in Indianapolis.
At a recent hospital craft show, Kathi introduced a new jewelry bracelet that will be on the web site soon as part of the Ticklebug Baby product line at http://www.ticklebugbaby.com. "Lots of people knew about the baby changing kit," she said.
Created by this mother and daughter team, this takes a traditional diaper bag to the next level which Kathi describes as having "an extra set of hands." In designing this new kit, she once followed a harried mom into a washroom and watched how the mother tried to balance the baby, reach for wipes and change the diaper.
Manufactured in the USA, the kit is 24.5 inches wide and 28 inches long when fully extended. Unlike products that have a hard surface, it has a cushion for the baby's comfort and pockets for creams, diapers and other necessities. It even has a holder for a toy to keep the baby preoccupied. There's a larger version for "special needs" children and toddlers.
The story has been on Chicago TV stations, and Fox News is doing a feature in Indianapolis with Tina this month. Both compact and fashionable, the kit was also selected by Jewels and Pinstripes to be included in baskets for celebrities' babies. Those mentioned above are a few who have them, and several have written personal notes of thanks.
But the kit is also a platform to promote awareness of breast cancer. Tina is a twice-cancer survivor whose story is included in every kit, along with a breast self-examination guide from the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation. Tina survived Hodgkin's disease at age 17 and breast cancer at 22. Today, she's cancer free. She along with her mother shares her story in the kit to "bring awareness of the disease."
Kathi and Tina had the idea for the kit about three years ago. Tina, who then lived in Schererville, was changing her baby and expressed frustration to Kathi about wanting a handy kit that contained all the essentials. This sparked an idea in Kathi to design a kit based upon her daughter's ideas.
A perfectionist, she created 10 versions until she was satisfied. She made one for both Tina and her daughter-in-law, also named Tina. The latter used it at a gathering among friends, and it created such a buzz that Kathi and her daughter were inspired to launch the kit.
In the past year, they have doubled the number of boutiques that sell the product. Soon it will be sold at a retailer on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. All this in three years!
John Davies is Managing Director of the Society of Innovators launched by Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana Northwest. The opinion expressed in this column is the writer's and not necessarily that of The Times.
