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Innovations of entrepreneurial Durham mum capture global attention

Durham mum Dawn Howe has launched a new business venture after becoming frustrated with the mess made during her baby daughter’s mealtimes.

Launching MessyLittleThing.com, Dawn’s new long sleeved weaning bib has started to generate interest from as far afield as the United States, South Africa and Europe.

After being inundated with requests from friends after they’d seen a bespoke bib she made for her daughter Emily, the 39 year old decided to turn the innovation into a fully fledged enterprise.

Made from lightweight water repellent materials, the bib fits around a baby’s wrists, neck and legs and offers full coverage against spills and stains.

Initially only making a handful, the entrepreneurial mum is now receiving a growing stream of orders from across the UK and has even had orders from Germany, the US and a distribution request to South Africa.

Now Dawn, who is Head of Marketing at Sunderland-based online bingo operators tombola.co.uk, retails not only the Long Sleeved Weaning Bib, but a range of products to help keep mealtimes clean for babies, toddlers and additional needs children.

Dawn explained: “I wanted my daughter to enjoy her food at the weaning stage; explore textures, squish it if she wanted and watch it dribble down her sleeve without me fussing about keeping everything clean.

“I couldn’t find a suitable or comfortable bib that covered all her clothes that also fastened snugly around her neck as well as her wrists and legs. So I created my own. It didn’t take much for my friends to start requesting the bib and it’s grown from there. I sourced a local manufacturer and set up the website. The response has been fantastic.”

Dawn admits her own early efforts at making the bibs weren’t up to scratch, but since locating a manufacturer in Northumberland, she has had the confidence to start retailing the products from the website, with promising early feedback.

“A lot of great ideas are borne from personal experiences. I was convinced I wasn’t the only one experiencing these frustrations, so it’s affirming to see that other parents have some very positive things to say,” she added.

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