Lou Childs and her daughter Katy Mallory came up with the idea for the Slumber Pod after Katy, her husband and their baby visited Lou’s house for a Christmas break. The “break” wasn’t a restful one. Katy’s baby, normally a good sleeper at home, was up all night causing massive sleep deprivation for all involved. It was so bad, Katy cut the visit short.
When she got home, she started fiddling with ideas for a baby privacy tent that could surround a travel crib or playpen. Initially, her ideas were little more than draping blankets over the crib, but she wanted a lightweight, easy to set up, portable solution. Slumber Pod is what she came up with and she brought her mom along for the entrepreneurial journey.
SlumberPod is a free standing tent that sits over a travel crib. It blocks out light and provides a cozy and secure place for baby to sleep while on the go. When baby is in the tent, the theory is s/he will sleep better – and so will mom and dad. A Slumber Pod will set you back $155 on Amazon – about the cost of a decent travel crib.
Katy is shipping her Slumberpods internationally now, so sales must be decent. She likely needs a Shark’s help with manufacturing and retail distribution. The successful Kickstarter campaign shows proof of concept, but will a Shark want to join Katy and her mom on their journey?
My Take on Slumber Pod
As a father of five, I’ve had many sleepless nights due to fussy babies – both at home and while traveling. We still laugh about the time our oldest daughter – about two at the time – escaped her travel crib in a hotel and proceeded to shred our entire stock of snacks. We woke up to quite a mess! Whether the Slumberpod would have prevented that fiasco, we will never know. Thankfully, my sleep deprivation days due to waking babies are long over.
I’m pretty sure we would have gotten one of these when our kids were small. We had EVERY baby gadget under the sun. I can see this as a cute baby shower gift for the new mother’s arsenal. Slumber Pod looks like a winner to me.
Do Sharks Want to Slumber?
Baby products are hit and miss in the Tank. Smartly designed ones usually fare well, as long as sales are growing. The good thing about baby products is there is a constant new market, which is why the Sharks will invest in Slumberpod.
I can see any one of the Sharks making a play for this. Lori with like its demonstrability. Kevin will like how is fits into his “something wonderful” platform. Robert will like the direct sales approach. Mark and barbara will like the numbers and the entrepreneurs. I expect multiple bids for this product, the question is, which Shark wins?
Entrepreneur, auteur, raconteur. Rob Merlino is a blogger and writer who enjoys the Shark Tank TV show and Hot Dogs. A father of five who freelances in a variety of publications, Rob has a stable of websites including Shark Tank Blog, Hot Dog Stories, Rob Merlino.com and more.
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