Hip Mommies

Reinventing a Wholesale Business into a Premium Multichannel Brand.

Founded in 2004 as a traditional wholesale-distribution business, Hip Mommies underwent a complete transformation when I joined as co-founder and creative director in 2014. As Hip Mommies turned 10, I led a comprehensive rebrand and rebuild, reimagining the future by expanding beyond B2B wholesale into thriving direct-to-consumer channels. I built and optimized our Shopify platform and Amazon storefront, creating new revenue streams while maintaining our premium brand positioning. Today, at 21 years old, Hip Mommies serves both over 300 retailers nationwide and a growing D2C customer base, delivering thoughtfully designed, sustainable baby products across Canada.

Timeline

Ten Years

Technology that enables seamless, personalized interactions across wholesale and direct consumer markets

Positioning sustainability and community as core brand values that differentiate Hip Mommies from traditional wholesale approaches

High-quality, diverse marketing resources that give retailers powerful, ready-to-use media for marketing across multiple channels.

Traditionally, wholesale distributors operated behind the scenes, serving as a logistical bridge with little emphasis on brand personality. Recognizing a unique opportunity, I transformed Hip Mommies into a brand that retailers and consumers actively sought out. I developed a compelling brand voice and a distinct visual identity that resonated with both B2B and B2C audiences, positioning us as a curator of eco-friendly, sustainable children’s products.

Moving away from conventional catalog-driven methods, we built our identity around meaningful stories of sustainability, thoughtful design, and conscious consumption. By crafting a unique narrative and leveraging strategic digital initiatives, we reshaped market conversations and influenced purchasing decisions across the board.

Community Building & Content Strategy

Our exclusive Product “HM insiders” program brought select parents into our product development process, deliberately designed to elevate their status while gathering authentic feedback. This intimate group of six parents tested products in their homes, connecting through private group chats that fostered genuine relationships. By giving these parents insider access and recognition, we created passionate advocates who naturally spread the word about our brands, demonstrating that the best marketing happens when you empower your community.

Our annual Enthusiast Search became one of our most powerful marketing campaigns, engaging families across Canada in a celebration of diversity and authentic representation. This community-driven initiative invited parents nationwide to participate, generating 50% higher engagement rates than any other marketing effort. Every participant was recognized, while select winners were featured in professional photoshoots, with their images used throughout the following year’s marketing materials.

This program served multiple strategic purposes. It created authentic marketing assets that truly reflected Canada’s diverse families while also providing our retail partners with much-needed representative imagery. At the same time, it strengthened our community bonds through meaningful engagement. By addressing the lack of diversity in baby product marketing, we transformed our platform into a force for positive change while building our most successful community initiative to date.

At the time, feeding products were an afterthought. Big-box retailers stocked mass-market plastic spoons and bowls, and there was no premium option for millennial parents who were deeply engaged in their child’s development. Ezpz was different. They had an in-house feeding therapist and a focus on developmental milestones, which I saw as a unique opportunity to position them as a premium brand.

Elevating Ezpz as the First Premium Feeding Brand

Instead of pursuing a mass-market launch, we curated a deliberate distribution strategy, keeping ezpz out of big-box stores and launching exclusively with high-end baby boutiques and specialty retailers. This approach:

• Built credibility by aligning ezpz with trusted, high-quality brands in the baby space
• Created demand by making the product feel aspirational and harder to access
• Allowed for premium pricing, reinforcing the brand’s value proposition

I also immersed myself in parenting communities and social media conversations, identifying how millennial parents were engaging with feeding as part of their child’s development. This social listening strategy helped shape marketing, influencer partnerships, and messaging, ensuring that ezpz’s launch spoke directly to the needs and values of this audience.

Building Brand Awareness & Market Leadership

To establish ezpz as a must-have brand, I executed a multi-channel strategy that included:

• Secured features in Today’s Parent, Canada’s top parenting publication, through strategic PR and media outreach.
• Built strong influencer partnerships by working with authentic, trusted voices in the parenting and feeding spaces.
• Leveraged educational content and community engagement initiatives to position ezpz as a developmentally essential product—not merely a feeding tool.
• Collaborated with medical professionals to integrate ezpz products into clinical settings, reinforcing their developmental benefits and credibility.

By taking a thoughtful, strategic approach to positioning and distribution, I helped shape ezpz’s early brand development and establish it as the gold standard in premium feeding.

Digital Experience & Growth

The future of wholesale lies in digital connection, and I led Hip Mommies’ transformation by creating meaningful relationships through technology. I reimagined the traditional wholesale experience by developing digital tools that brought our retail partners closer. Beyond building a seamless B2B ordering platform, we introduced video product walkthroughs and virtual showroom sessions that maintained personal connections while eliminating geographical barriers. Our “Packaged Goods” monthly newsletter offered buyers quick access to inventory data, and our B2B content strategy provided industry insights and product education instead of just sales pitches.

For our consumer audience, we crafted targeted email flows that followed families through their feeding journey—suggesting timely products and sharing educational content. This approach built trust through helpful information rather than aggressive sales tactics, reinforcing our role as a knowledgeable guide in sustainable children’s products. By leveraging the StoryBrand framework, I positioned Hip Mommies as the trusted resource for both retailers and consumers. I designed and optimized our Shopify platform with a user-centered approach, streamlining B2B ordering through intuitive systems and digital catalogs that simplified wholesale processes.

To expand our reach while maintaining premium positioning, I also designed and launched our Amazon Canada storefront. This initiative involved optimizing product listings, enhancing brand visuals, and ensuring a seamless customer experience aligned with our storytelling-driven approach. By strategically managing inventory, refining messaging, and leveraging Amazon’s marketplace tools, we introduced our curated selection to a broader audience—providing consumers an easier way to discover and purchase our products without compromising our commitment to quality, sustainability, and selective distribution.