Totes Babies on 'Shark Tank': What is the cost, who are the founders and does it really make shopping with babies easy?
While the joys of new parenthood are plenty, it comes with its own fair share of challenges. Many new parents will attest to how difficult it can get to go shopping with their babies. It was no different for Chicago native Lindsey Fleischhauer.
As a new mother, Lindsey was struggling and getting anxious over going shopping with her newborn baby in tow. So, she came up with a nifty product called Totes Babies, which makes shopping a relaxing and hassle-free experience for parents with their babies. Read on to know more about this unique product.
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What is Totes Babies?
Totes Babies is a car set carrier that resembles a hammock. The user can unfurl the carrier and place it atop a shopping cart, and attach it with the help of grips to the sides of the cart. Once the carrier is securely attached to the cart, the baby's car seat can be placed over the hammock-like canvas, and strap down to the seat, so that the baby can be safe and secure inside the car seat in your shopping cart while you cruise through the shopping aisles.
"New and experienced parents alike recognize the need to keep our precious cargo safe, comfortable, and quiet while the shopping gets done! Totes Babies will fit on shopping carts of all sizes!" claims the brand's website. The car seat carrier can be attached to most conventional shopping carts and can hold a weight of up to 75 pounds.
Who are the founders?
Lindsey Fleischhauer and Stanley Valiulis, a father-daughter duo from Naperville, Chicago, are the founders of Totes Babies. When Lindsay had her baby three years ago, she began getting frustrated and anxious at the thought of going shopping with her newborn baby, as the baby's car seat wouldn't fit on any of the shopping carts and take up a lot of space, and leaving the baby behind at home or in the car wasn't an option. In an interview with Chicago Tribune, Lindsey explained, "As a new mom, you want to get out of the house and not be cooped up. But it was difficult to go anywhere because the car seat took all the room."
So, she sought the help of her father, Stanley to come up with a solution that would address her problems. Stanley is the president and owner of Rockford-based Subsource Inc., Glendale Heights-based High PSI Pressure Washing, and the former president/CEO of Rockford-based Southern Imperial; he is also listed on more than 40 patents. Stanley joined hands with his daughter to design a carrier that would fit on the shopping carts. Their first-ever prototype was made with curtain rods.
Stanley eventually roped in his engineer friends to help him build and develop the unique product. "I had moms and dads ask about it and that’s when I knew we were on to something,” Lindsey revealed while recounting the first time she took the carrier out for shopping. Since their launch in 2018, the father-daughter duo seemed to have done fairly good business. Stanley said, "We can’t disclose exact numbers, but it is in the thousands," when asked about how many carriers were sold.
What is the cost and where to buy it?
You can get your very own Totes Babies carrier from either the brand's website, or Amazon, or Buy Buy Baby. The carrier is retailing on Amazon, Buy Buy Baby and Totes Babies websites for $39.95 to $45.95. The Totes Babies carrier can be used on shopping carts from Target, Walmart, Costco, H-E-B, Safeway, Kroger, Publix, Albertson's, Aldi, Sam's Club, Hy-Vee, Lowe's, Home Depot, Meijer, Piggly Wiggly, Winn-Dixie, Sprouts, Wegmans, Food Lion, Giant Food, Reasor's, and many more!
How is the company doing?
Totes Babies seems to be doing well, as the company has launched two new products such as phone and tablet mounts. "Our Versatile Rock steady clamp can firmly clamp onto any bar from a treadmill to a grocery cart and even the headrest when driving on the road with your little ones. Just clamp it on to your desired location, slide your tablet or iPad into the universal cradle + you’re ready to rock!" shared the brand on their Instagram post.
Who will steal the deal?
The sharks will decide on whether to invest in the company or not based on several factors such as the sales numbers, profit margins, demand for the product, etc. Considering it is a baby product, Lori Greiner may be interested in making a deal.
'Shark Tank' Season 12 airs every Friday at 8/7c only on ABC.
