Traveling with young children is always hard, in part because of the equipment you need to bring. But what if you could rent all of it at your destination? Fran Maier, founder of BabyQuip, joins Startup Savants to discuss her baby equipment rental business.
- Startup Savants is a business podcast that tells the stories behind up-and-coming startups.
- Francis Maier joins Startup Savants to discuss launching her baby equipment rental business.
- BabyQuip delivers all the necessary gear to wherever a family needs it – the airport, a hotel, or even the grandparents’ house.
A Chance Meeting
Francis used to advise other startups, but in 2016 she decided to look into founding a company that would take advantage of the burgeoning gig economy. She attended Women’s Startup Lab, a pre-accelerator that focuses on female founders, and met a woman with a local baby gear rental business who wanted to take it national. This seemed like it would fill a hole in the market, and Francis was intrigued.
“At that point, there were a lot of companies doing property management and cleaning services and those kinds of things,” she said during her interview with Startup Savants. “But there was nobody else doing [nationwide baby gear rental]. And so she goes through her pitch, and I say, ‘Hey, I think I should be your CEO.’”
Eventually, the owner of the business agreed. “I had the gut feeling that this was a startup that I knew I could make successful,” Francis said. “And again, there wasn’t really a whole lot of competition, nothing national. I know how to build trusted brands and, at that point, had … a good network of people who could potentially invest in us. And I did get some really good investment really early that, honestly, I don’t think [my business partner] would’ve been able to get.”
Promoting Trust, Forming Partnerships
Francis explained that BabyQuip’s goal is to help parents travel more easily with the truckload of equipment for their infant or toddler. It can deliver whatever type of gear a family requires, wherever it’s needed.
“Traveling with babies and all that baby gear, car seats, strollers, et cetera, is really, really hard,” Francis told Startup Savants. “And families, especially millennial parents, really want to travel, want to take their kids, want to take those photos, want to have those Instagram memories, want to spend time together, and of course, especially post-pandemic. And what we do is make it easy for families to pack light and travel happy.”
She said one of the company’s biggest challenges was earning the trust of its clients, who obviously want to make sure the equipment they’re renting is safe for their children. “From the very start, I knew that trust was the number one thing that we had to deliver on,” she said. “And so we put a lot of investment into developing trust.”
Looking to 2023, BabyQuip wants to expand into new markets. “We want to be where our customers are traveling, wherever they’re traveling,” she said. The company currently serves most of the US, and it also has footholds in Canada and Mexico. BabyQuip also has its sights set on parts of the Caribbean and even Australia. Finally, BabyQuip is partnering with hospitality brands like VRBO and Destination Hotels By Hyatt.
Startup Savants Podcast
The Startup Savants podcast is a business podcast created by The Really Useful Information Company (TRUiC). Listeners can hear the stories behind startups, as told by their founders who are in the midst of growing their companies.
Ethan, an entrepreneur, and Annaka, a branding expert, host the Startup Savants podcast. They bring disparate skills and life experiences to their interviews, providing listeners with important business insights and a holistic perspective on the startup ecosystem.
Hear from a variety of real startup founders from around the globe and with varying backgrounds, making their startup idea a reality. Learn from experts sharing their industry knowledge on venture capital, securing funding, and more on the Startup Savants podcast.
Final Thoughts
In her interview with Startup Savants, Francis Maier talks about her company BabyQuip, including how she got the idea for the startup, the company’s growth, and where she sees it going in the future. She also shares lessons learned along the way that other entrepreneurs will want to hear.
You can find the Startup Savants podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
