Cloth nappy passion brings rewards for home schooling mum of three

This week Cas talked to WAHM Rebecca Chai about turning your passion into profits and working around the family.

Tell us a little about the person behind the business?

I am a mum of three children, we home educate and love our flexible lifestyle that facilitates lifelong learning. I love to connect with people one-to-one and love to help solve problems!

And now a little about the business itself?

I not only give nappy advice and provide modern cloth nappies for purchase at Bean Sprout Bubba, but I also created my own line of cloth nappies called ecoBumba. I have been operating since 2009 and have seen the changes in online business during that time.

How did you come up with your business name?

Bean = pregnant in belly, Sprout = labour and delivery, Bubba = Baby!

What made you want to begin a WAH business and how did you get started?

I just wanted to be with the children, yet I needed a creative outlet after a day with a young baby.
We also planned to home school from early on, so I structured my business to fit in with the flexible lifestyle I now have.

What inspires you to keep your business going?

Knowing that I can reach out and help another mother to start using cloth nappies and reap the benefits that go with using cloth is what keeps me going.

How do you advertise your business and which methods have proven more successful?

I write a lot of nappy-related niche content on my blog, contribute to other blogs as a guest nappy blogger,and also do a small amount of wholesale for my ecoBumba cloth nappies. I have participated in numerous collaborative showcases, and have also supported various reputable charities run by people I trust. I use social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter (sometimes) and Instagram to reach out to other audiences.

Do you have a current best-selling product or service? If yes, tell us about it.

My best-selling product is the ecoBumba 20 nappy pack. Why? Because it sets up a mum for full time cloth nappy use from newborn to toddler, and also comes with bonus items included with the package like a nappy sprayer (worth $60).

How do you juggle your family and your WAH business? Any tips for other WAHPs?

I prioritise tasks to the time of the day so that I can be fully present on the task at hand, whether that’s working or being with my family. I try my best to prioritise my home chores and errands, because really, if the home environment is calm, my work day will be calm too. Ah the joys of being a home-based business!

And finally, what advice would you give to anyone wanting to start a WAH business?

If you think you will get easy money when working at home, don’t do it. A working at home businesses requires a lot of determination, hard work and the ability to learn new skills and to set up simple systems to keep things running smoothly. To do well and to stay focused you need a plan and accountability to carry it through. Do not be afraid of the unknown; just tackle things head-on with enthusiasm as long as you have the skills to carry it out.