Mom Brings Thailand Home With Her Business

I know we tend to hear quite a bit about the benefits of things ‘Made in the US’ but that shouldn’t stop us from recognizing the talents of people that live elsewhere. Julia has a personal connection to a place that brings it’s own unique styles and tastes to the world, Thailand. She was living there when she met her husband.

When they decided to move to the US, they brought a bit of Thailand with them. She also wanted to find a way to stay home with her children. That became an inspiration for Monkey Beanz, a place where she can sell many different toys, as well as clothing, that are made in Thailand and sold through her website.

Giveaway

If you like the dress shown here, then I’ve got good news for you! Julia is giving one of our readers a chance to win this dress. It’s available in child sizes 3, 5/6 and 7/8. For giveaway purposes she’s shipping to the US only. If you want to purchase something from her website, she does ship out of the US but you will have to contact her for a shipping rate.

To enter this giveaway, leave a comment here. The giveaway starts now and ends on June 30th at 11:59pm. The winner will be chosen on July 1st and contacted by email.

Monkey Beanz is a fair trade focused importer of kids’ clothes and toys from Thailand. We create and select products that help support family, friends and quality Thai businesses.

How many different products do you offer?

Our new clothing line offers 16 styles and is being offered online as they arrive from Thailand. We carry about 10 styles of cloth handmade toys and nursery décor as well.

What is the story behind your choice of Thailand for your products?

I lived in Thailand for about 4 years and I met my now husband, who is Thai, while living there. We were married in Thailand and our first daughter was born and raised there before we moved to the US about 2 years ago.

How long have you been in business?

We have been planning and learning since before we moved to the US but are really only beginning in the last few months to promote the site and expand beyond a local market.

What inspired you to start Monkey Beanz?

When we made the difficult decision to move to the US, we began thinking about a way for me to stay at home with our kids. We also wanted to find something that would allow us to remain connected to Thailand and support the local people of Thailand. As parents, we also felt very strongly about bringing quality products into our home for our kids. We started brainstorming how we could bring this all together and the dream of Monkey Beanz was born!

What steps were needed to get your business up and running? How long did it take?

It takes a long time and I still feel like I am constantly learning as I go. Particularly with 2 small kids and a major culture adjustment when we moved here, I have had to give myself the freedom to take it slow. I have benefited tremendously from many local resources that offer free business counseling. Some of the steps needed for me were actually the mistakes I made along the way (though thankfully nothing too huge so far!). It’s a huge learning process that, for me, does not end with the business up and running.

Have you learned anything since launching that you wish you’d known before?

I wish I had listened to people telling me that it was okay to ask for more help. I always felt like I had to figure out everything on my own from website creation and maintenance to business concepts to financial issues to product photos. I’ve only recently discovered that, more often than not, the benefit of a little help far outweighs the cost. So now I find myself scrambling to find people to help out with various aspects of the business and it would have made my life a lot easier if I had that team set up about a year ago.

What kind of advertising options have you applied and found useful?

We are only now really beginning to delve into the world of advertising. As a work-at-home-mom I have found a wealth of resources online from blogs to PR firms to forums that I have used as a way to get our name out there. We have booths at various local markets in the summer and are getting some interviews into local newspapers and magazines. With the children’s retail industry being so huge, we rely a lot on word of mouth so I think of our commitment to good customer service as another form of marketing.

How do you manage your time for working around family time?

This is a constant challenge. I am trying to get into a schedule so I have time set aside for work and time set aside for my kids. Often I end up trying to do both at the same time so my attention is not fully on either and no one feels like they are getting what they need. One of my goals for the summer is to get out of that habit. Most of the time, the real work gets done after the kids are in bed.

Are you able to involve the whole family in the process?

This is one of the great things about Monkey Beanz and the piece that is crucial to our vision of the business. My husband and I design the clothes and he is the one on the phone and webcam to the people we work with in Thailand so he is deeply involved. Our older daughter is almost 4 and loves being our Monkey Beanz model. When we were back in Thailand this past winter working with our seamstress on the new patterns, our daughter was always chiming in with her opinions on fabrics and dresses. Our youngest isn’t talking yet but the whole family comes when we do markets and it truly is a family business for us.

Do you have any advice for other moms who would like to take a step towards starting their own online store?

My best advice is to truly believe in whatever business you are creating. As a mom diving into the business owner world, there are many challenges to face. If you have your vision clear in your head and truly believe in it, you will get there. Our dream of what Monkey Beanz has the potential to be, from our products to the support of fair trade and the people we work with, is what has gotten me through the more challenging times. And when you see that vision start to become a reality, it is incredible and there is just a tremendous feeling of pride.

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