Necessity is the Father & Mother of Invention
“Necessity is the Father and Mother of invention” or so the old saying goes. For one Dublin couple the invention was more a consequence of frustration than anything else.
Many of today’s cash rich, time poor generation find shopping a time consuming, frustrating necessity. For Keith Feighery and Gillian Wynne, the arrival of their first baby, Maya, proved the catalyst that brought about another new arrival, Baba Beag (www.bababeag.ie), an online store where anyone can shop wherever and whenever they wish for clothing, gifts and accessories for babies, infants and young children.
“Baba Beag is the result of Gillian and I, as a working couple, having little or no time at weekends to do anything other than play catch-up, where going shopping was the last thing on our mind,” recalls Keith Feighery, whose background is in banking and insurance software. “The problem was compounded by the general lack of choice when it came to buying baby clothes, gifts and accessories on the high street. “There was and still is a dearth of choice for people buying for children beyond the generic designs that are offered by the large UK stores. Added to this, is the fact, that a lot of people do not have the time to trawl around the shops looking for kids clothes, gifts or general parenting essentials”.
Feighery believes that ‘people want and need a realistic convenient alternative to high street shopping that is reliable, secure and offers them great choice at reasonable prices”. If Feighery was right a new business that offered wide choice, ease of shopping and speedy delivery was the way forward. Feighery was convinced that an online store provided the best way to make shopping convenient and accessible. But when it came to what to stock Feighery and his partner knew that they would need to look well beyond what was being offered in the large multiples and traditional boutiques. “All the ranges in the shops were practically the same regarding seasonal patterns, colours and materials. It was very hard to find independently designed clothes or original gift ideas and clever accessories” he says.
The husband and wife team first laid down their requirements. The clothes, gifts and accessories had to be of top quality, have a strong design element, and be contemporary, original and well priced. As well as this, there was recognition that people want to have choice in terms of well designed goods but also have an option to buy organic and ethically produced labels where they choose. The search commenced in January 2006 with visits to various trade shows around Europe. “We started out by trying to find products that could not be found in every traditional outlet. We found exclusive lines like Imps and Elfs, UJU London, Toby Tiger, Pooki and Co., Turquaz Pyjamas, Togz waterproofs, and knitwear by Bonnie Baby. We knew that we could offer a real alternative to the big generic stores” says Keith. At the same time, they started to build their web site. Business issues With the same thoroughness, the couple tackled the setting up of the business.
Keith did a Start Your Own Business course at Terenure Enterprise Centre which he found very helpful. “It helps you to articulate your idea. There was great advice about how to go about setting up the company and how to fund it. Also useful was information on effective Marketing and PR.” At the same time he approached Dublin City Enterprise Board and was assigned a Mentor who helped him draft his business plan. He applied for and received an Employment Grant of €6,000 and a Commercial Website Grant of €2,500.
The Baba Beag website went live at the end of June 2006 and, though it is early days yet, the business is thriving. “We are very pleased with progress to date and, without doubt there are significant advantages to selling over the Internet. It suits users who decide when and where they want to shop. It is completely secure as all payments are handled by a third party payment provider with nobody else seeing the customer’s card details. We have lower overheads than our competitors so we can offer high quality goods at very competitive prices.” In order to provide a next day delivery service Baba Beag holds stocks and employs a courier service. “Using a courier service provides the reliability and assurance of next day delivery which is great for people who don’t want to have to wait a week or 10 days for the goods to arrive, which is the time lag that a lot of the larger online stores offer.” To date, the business has been funded by Keith and Gillian’s own money matched by bank borrowings and, of course, assisted by Dublin City Enterprise grants. Growth and future Though less than a year in business, Baba Beag is now well established with orders coming from all over the island of Ireland and, increasingly from overseas. “The idea is to build the business up in Ireland first and focus more directly on overseas markets then” says Keith. “But we still get a considerable amount of orders from Britain, US, Australia the rest of Europe and the Irish Diaspora generally. We are certainly going to invest further in our business and will continue to expand our range.” For further information contact Keith Feighery, Baba Beag, 46 Cherryfield Avenue, Ranelagh, Dublin 6. T: 01 496 8028. M: 086 607 0274. E: info@bababeag.ie W: www.bababeag.ie
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