According to The SOP, one mom was nearing the end of her maternity leave and on the look out for daycare when she found her opportunity as an entrepreneur.
With her year long maternity drawing to a close and the remote possibility of finding a day care that could tailor its working hours to her shift duties, Amanda Slonim, a 30-year-old trained nurse, decided to pursue her latent dream. And that`s how The Little Bird Fly, a shop that sells gently used children`s clothing, toys, books, strollers and maternity wear was born. Also on offer here are new handmade clothing – created by Slonim herself – and artwork by local artists. Of particular import for parents and kids alike is the child friendly play area with attractive toys and soft mats enabling parents to do their shopping in peace while their kids are safely preoccupied.
Retracing her initial steps, Slonim says, “There weren`t many second-hand clothing stores in the west-end so we (mothers) were travelling long distance to buy these clothes. At the time every mother I was talking to seemed to say: `We really need something here in the west end`. So, the idea (of opening gently used clothing store) was always there. Also I like to sew and create new stuff and the store provided an avenue for that too.”
Slonim got this idea off the ground, shoring it up with finances from family savings. Last July, she inaugurated Little Bird Fly in Toronto`s Junction area. But what sets this young mom`s venture apart from other such stores is that it is not all about toys and clothes. If there is a musician getting kids and parents to belt out tunes one day, they could be breaking into peals of laughter on a clown`s antics the other. And soon Slonim is planning to get a nutritionist and a professional to introduce parents to baby sign language. She hopes the array of activities would make the Little Bird Fly a parenting hub.
Photo by Tracy Hunter