Helping out with baby care
Getting stuck in a mall without a spare nappy or tin of baby food is a nightmare for any busy parent.
But entrepreneur Sophia Nash has come up with a solution.
She has cut a deal with Westfield to install diaper vending machines in the St Lukes and Albany malls.
The mother-of two says the idea was conceived about three years ago shortly after she gave birth to her first child.
‘‘I’d go out and because of baby brain I’d forget to bring a nappy and then she would have a violent poo attack or something. It would be half way down my shirt and all over her,’’ Ms Nash says.
‘‘It was just a pain to have to go down to the supermarket and buy a whole bag of nappies and lug it around to go and change her.’’
The New Bloom vending machines are located in the malls’ parents rooms for easy access when an emergency arises.
‘‘I think this idea is something that people have been thinking about for a long time and I was just the first person to jump on it,’’ Ms Nash says.
‘‘For Westfield it was really a no-brainer. It creates an easy solution to a problem that would have parents leaving.’’
The machines stock single biodegradable nappies that come with a small pack of wipes for $5. They also stock reusable ecodiapers, organic baby food sachets and pacifiers.
‘‘I’ve had great feedback from parents about the machines. Even people that haven’t used it yet but find out about them are like ‘ Oh my god, I totally need that’,’’ Ms Nash says.
Ms Nash aims to get the machines installed in malls across Auckland, as well as at airports and swimming pools.
Parents can search for The New Bloom on Facebook and contribute suggestions about what should be in the machines.