Judy Pettersen

WHAT GOT YOU STARTED

by Burke Campbell

Published in the Financial Post

January 21, 2008

Judy Pettersen, president of Pettersen Infant Products, makes the Baby Trekker (www.babytrekker.com) in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Judy Pettersen tells Burke Campbell what sparked her entrepreneurial spirit.

THE ACCIDENTAL ENTREPRENEUR: “I needed a carrier that would let me carry my baby easily in front or behind me, and let the baby face inward or outward. I couldn’t find a carrier that was padded and flexible. Finally, I designed one for my baby and made it. Others saw it and wanted one, too.”

IT BEGINS: “For a local home business show I made thirty babytrekkers. In the first night, I sold twenty-three. That’s when I realized the demand.”

A CALL AWAY: “I started my company in 1989 with a 1-800 number. We were such a success that the Manitoba Telephone System used us to advertise how the number helps grow business.”

BIG THRILL: “The babytrekker appears in the Disney film, The Pacifier, with Vin Diesel. It was a proud moment to see my Trekker up on the big screen.”

BONDING: “It’s crucial for a parent to hold a baby. Carrying the child on errands, to places and events, reinforces the bond between the two.”

PRACTICAL IDEALISM: “When we design with people in mind, you’d be surprised how the best solutions come to us that way.”

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