Like most people, here at Arbtalk Media, we have been assessing the situation in the world, wondering where to go next. I have learned in the past to take opportunities that come my way. Even if they don’t seem to be the thing you’re particularly interested in or have a passion for, you never know what other opportunities it can lead to.
The focus here at Arbtalk Media has been and always will be on the development of websites for arborists. I have completed several projects outside of this niche but it’s not something I have ever really pushed for. Most of the work has been for friends, or referrals from friends.
Our own personal circumstances have changed somewhat. My partner Simona (and also chief spell checker) has recently taken redundancy from her job due to Covid basically wiping out all their business. Whilst on maternity leave we looked carefully at our options and decided to have a go at an online shop selling baby teething jewellery. Starting a business in a field that is totally alien to you is a huge challenge with a lot to learn. Seeing what goes into the development of products, and the costs involved in testing them is a real eye-opener. Our own products that Simona makes herself include teething necklaces, teething rings, and dummy clips. In addition, we have been actively searching for good quality brands to stock to ensure our catalogue has enough items to keep our customers browsing, such as Silicone bibs, dummies, and toys. Thankfully my main role in the business is in handling the website build and offering some business advice where required/asked for so I don’t have to concern myself too much with the individual products, other than ensuring they pop up in Google here and there with the use of a carefully thought out SEO strategy!
Overall I am enjoying the new challenge. It’s good to have something different to focus on occasionally, and of course, starting a new business is always exciting, waiting for those first new orders to come flooding in! Unfortunately at the moment, it’s somewhere between a drip and a trickle, but with a lot of hard work we hope to build this into something worthwhile.
We’d love to hear from you if you’ve had any new ideas during the pandemic, and of course, we’d love to be involved if you need help with web creation, or even implementing ideas into your existing websites.
You can follow our progress so far at Mamiina Teething Products, or by liking our Facebook page.
Fast forward a couple of years and Mamiina has gone from strength to strength with the opening of our baby shop in Suffolk at Stonham Barns Park between Ipswich and Stowmarket. Our range has expanded to include a full range of baby products including larger equipment such as baby prams, strollers, cots, next-to-me cribs, and much more!
Supporting local businesses
As part of our expansion, we have made the decision to support other local businesses by providing shelf space for them to display their products within our store. This has benefited the shop immensely due to the originality of the products on offer. We are really excited to welcome our latest local business, Little Lavender Baby Boutique which is a business start-up selling baby clothes in Woodbridge.
