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The WubbaNub is Born
It is said that necessity is the mother of invention. For Carla Schneider, soothing her infant on her family’s first vacation was an absolute necessity. What was supposed to be a relaxing week away from home had instead become a series of meltdowns from her infant son Bret. The only thing that would prevent Bret’s fussing and crying was his beloved pacifier. However, whenever he dropped it, the crying would begin again.
After several never-ending days of battling ‘missing pacifier syndrome’, a desperate Carla found the hotel sewing kit and sewed the pacifier onto Bret’s favorite soft plush toy. Bret could easily hold onto his “binky” and retrieve it himself if it fell.
The result? A happy baby, a peaceful Schneider family vacation and the birth of the first WubbaNub.
WubbaNub Grows Up
For the first few years, Carla’s primary customers were hospitals across the nation. New parents were awed by the tranquility that the WubbaNubs provided their infants and left the hospital with happy newborns and their new WubbaNubs in tow. They spread the word to other parents, and demand for the product quickly increased.
Parents began requesting WubbaNubs at local boutiques and specialty stores. These boutiques were intrigued and contacted Carla to fulfill the customers’ requests. Before she knew it, she was shipping WubbaNubs to boutiques and specialty stores across the country. Today, these stores remain Carla’s most loyal customers, and she credits them with helping put WubbaNub on the map.
In 2009, WubbaNubs became available in large department, mass market and online stores, including Amazon, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Dillard’s, Babies“R”Us, buybuy Baby and Books-A-Million.
Over the past 16 years, more than a million WubbaNubs have been sold in fine children’s boutiques, department stores and toy stores. Testimonials from parents and caregivers have been a huge factor in making WubbaNub a household name. Many first-time customers become loyal fans. Once you go Wub, everything else is just a pacifier.
For the Luv of WubbaNub
Although pacifiers have been a family staple for many years, Carla’s patented concept is a truly innovative improvement. The plush attachment helps keep the pacifier in place near the baby and makes it easier for little hands to grasp and manipulate than a regular pacifier. The cute plush design can provide comfort to infants and can help to prevent the pacifier from being lost, dropped, or forgotten.
Although that first Schneider family vacation was many years ago, Carla’s core philosophy of creating products that she would feel safe giving her own children still holds true. WubbaNub has earned a reputation in the parenting and children’s industries for being dedicated to nurturing babies in the safest way possible. The pacifiers are BPA free, latex-free and made of medical-grade silicone. By surpassing the strictest safety codes and regulations, WubbaNub has become a trusted brand among parents.
Which Wub?
In 1999, WubbaNub released the first two WubbaNub styles: the Red Dog and Yellow Duck. The collection has since grown to 20 original WubbaNub designs, including the Baby Giraffe, Elephant and Little Lamb. In 2009, WubbaNub entered a licensing agreement with Mary Meyer Company to develop 12 additional designs for the Mary Meyer Baby Line, including the Mango Monkey and the Levi Lion. With 32 total designs, there is the perfect WubbaNub for every baby! In addition, a new WubbaNub product line is set to launch in the Spring of 2015, geared toward older infants and toddlers.
Giving Wub
Carla has always been emphatic about creating a company that is “paying it forward.” Philanthropy has been an integral part of the WubbaNub company culture since its inception.
Relationships with hospitals helped WubbaNub grow into the company that it is today, and Carla remains passionate about giving back to hospital and their patients. Every year, WubbaNubs are either donated or sold wholesale to neonatal units, NICUs and pediatric units across the country. WubbaNub also matches product donations and covers shipping costs for patient families who would like to donate WubbaNubs to hospitals themselves.
Three years ago, WubbaNub forged a formal partnership with Baby Buggy, a nonprofit organization devoted to providing essential gear and services to families in need. WubbaNub makes monthly donations to Baby Buggy and has distributed more than 1,500 WubbaNubs to families to date. Later this summer, WubbaNub employees will begin regularly donating their time by volunteering in the Baby Buggy warehouse.
About Carla Schneider, WubbaNub founder
Entrepreneurism and philanthropy are in Carla’s blood. Her mother, who founded a non-profit, was the ultimate role model. Through her example, she taught Carla that running a business and caring for others are not mutually exclusive. Carla began her own career working full-time at her mother’s non-profit while earning a degree in Special Education from Southern Connecticut State University. During this time, Carla married her husband Bret. After her first year of student teaching, she became pregnant with their first son. Bret Jr. was born, and WubbaNub was founded.
WubbaNub began as a labor of love. Carla’s goal was to do something good while growing the business slowly. For the first few years, Carla ran the business while continuing to work full-time. Eventually, Carla met the rapidly growing product demand by devoting herself to WubbaNub full-time.
For many years, Carla was personally responsible for every aspect of the business, from design and manufacturing to sales and customer service. As the company grew, Carla expanded her staff to five and moved the company headquarters from the basement of her home into a beautiful corporate office space.
Despite WubbaNub’s exponential growth, Carla has remained true to the business philosophies that have made WubbaNub the respected brand that it is today. Excellent customer satisfaction and product safety are of utmost importance, and Carla is loyal to the hospitals and small boutiques that initially believed in WubbaNub.
The Future of WubbaNub
With this strong foundation, Carla plans to continue WubbaNub’s trajectory of rapid growth. Carla wants the WubbaNub brand to grow up with the baby, remaining relevant into his or her toddler years. To that end, the company is currently planning WubbaNub Phase 2 for older infants and toddlers. The expanded line will include many brand new products, all with the trusted WubbaNub brand name and the safety promise that comes with it.
“We want children to grow up with WubbaNub so the brand becomes a family staple throughout childhood, maybe even for the four-legged members of the family,” said Carla.
“This has been an amazing journey, and we are gaining so much momentum for our future endeavors. You know the feeling of having the perfect gift for someone, and you can’t wait for them to open it? That’s how I feel about our new products - I am so excited for our families to see where the brand is headed.”
