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Sisters Fill Big Travel Need with Wee Idea

Q&A with Lesley and Shana Cherry, Co-Founders of Wee Travel Baby Equipment Rentals

In 2004, Lesley Cherry travelled to Vancouver with her new baby to visit her parents and sister Shana. Many parents with young children end up hauling everything with them from car seats to strollers, playpens and toys – but Lesley was fortunate. Her sister, with a boy just a little older than hers, had everything she would need already there.

“I wondered how anyone could possibly travel if they had to bring everything with them…and how they would survive the trip if they couldn’t,” says Lesley, who light-heartedly mused to her sister about starting a baby equipment rental company. Shana Cherry decided to do some research and found that nothing like that existed in Canada. With full-time jobs, young babies, no business plan and no time to even think about doing one, they put up a website and opened an office in Vancouver just to see what would happen.

“We both love travelling and love helping people,” explains Lesley, “We were also both looking for a way to fulfill a niche, work from home with flexible hours and spend more time with our kids. This business has provided us the opportunity to do just that.”

Q: What gave you the confidence that your business would succeed?

We already knew how stressful it was to travel with kids. We looked around and didn't see a service for baby equipment rentals so we knew we had found a void in the market. We also had tons of feedback indicating the idea was good. And just after we started the business, the airline industry really tightened their baggage allowances which helped us too!

Q: What were your start-up costs?

Fortunately, we were able to start the business with minimal investment. We created the website ourselves and purchased equipment on an as-needed basis. Since we were the first company of this kind in Canada, it was a new concept and people were happy to write articles about us so we got a lot of free press.

We also contacted hotels and told them about our services. They were thrilled because until that point, they were not able to help customers who arrived without car seats or strollers.

Q: Were you profitable from the beginning?

As luck would have it, the site launched just in time for winter vacation and the response was fantastic. We had our first order within three weeks of coming up with the idea and we have grown steadily ever since.

A few months after we started, we opened our Toronto office; a few years later we opened an office in Victoria. We’ve never looked back. The first few years we put out a lot of money - building a new site, buying lots of gear - but thankfully we are now at a point where we don’t need to put out as much and can start enjoying the profits.

Q: What has been your biggest achievement?

The biggest achievement has been taking an idea and making it happen successfully without having the know-how! Learning, making mistakes and growing have all been great experiences. Also opening an office in Victoria and finding the perfect person to take that on has been a huge asset.

But we haven’t stopped there. We are constantly trying to think of ways to make travel easier and less stressful for families. We’ve searched out products to make flying easier and safer; we’ve been one of the first companies to introduce new products to the Canadian market through our online store. And now that we’ve helped to make it easier for families to pack and safer to fly, we are working on new ideas: this past summer we opened a beautiful vacation rental property in Vancouver’s Kitsilano called The Modage. 

We listened to our customers and heard over and over again how difficult it is to stay in hotels with small children. A fully equipped kitchen, fridge, stove, laundry facilities and baby gear such as a crib, high chair, car seat, stroller and toys were all key desires. We decided we should do something about this, and The Modage was born. It’s kid-friendly, located in one of the most desirable areas of Vancouver and is within walking distance to Kits Beach, Granville Island and a number of parks and water parks. We will also stock the fridge for our customers and even have gourmet meals waiting for them in the fridge upon arrival - we know that nobody likes to run out to the grocery store the minute they check in, and kids are always hungry!

Q: What has been your biggest struggle?

The biggest struggle has been getting the word out to those who don’t know about us. It’s too costly to undertake the kind of advertising campaign it takes to effectively get the word out. However our site is well optimized so parents who are aware of the concept can easily find us. However, those who don’t are hard to reach. Thankfully, the concept is becoming more and more popular as the number of baby equipment rental companies around the globe grows.

Another struggle is trying to figure out how we want to grow the business, how big we want to grow it and how to get there. We are currently working with a mentor in this area.

Q: What keeps you going?

Without a doubt it’s the positive feedback we’ve received from our customers. They are our biggest ambassadors. Rarely a day goes by when we aren’t profusely thanked for our service and our customer service. Customers know when you genuinely care about them. We’ve always had jobs that centered around ‘helping’ people and this is really just an extension of our love for trying to be supportive and helpful to others. We look forward to interacting with our customers, getting feedback, finding new products and getting in touch with other business people in our communities.

Q: How many staff do you have?

Depending on the season and the city, anywhere from three to six.  During peak season we sometimes bring on people to assist with cleaning and answering phones as it’s too much to manage on our own.

Q: How do you balance business and home life?

This is for sure a struggle as we both have young children and this is not a ‘9-5’ job. We try to get most of our work done while the kids are in school or in the evenings when they are asleep. However, the phone does ring between 3 pm and 8 pm and we do need to take those calls. The kids are used to it although I know they’d prefer if we didn’t answer!

Q: What are the goals for your business?

We would like to be as busy throughout the year as we are during the summer. When we started out, we joked that our goal was to make enough money to afford a chef - that goal was attained…however still no chef! As the business grew our perspectives changed. We would like to continue to grow in other cities and to also diversify our concept somewhat.

Q: What is the best piece of advice you
have received?

Business is all about building relationships and that means keeping your customers happy. Some people go into business to make a quick buck. As a result, their financial return is more important to them than the return of their customers.

We go out of our way to build customer relationships, even if it means we take a loss. There have been many times when we’ve refunded our customers for inconveniences that really had nothing to do with us. This was the case, for example, when a hotel misplaced an item we delivered and the customer had to wait an hour while it was found. This type of service has helped build our reputation. Sure, we’re out the rental price of the item and the courier service to the hotel but you can’t put a price on the profuse gratitude of a customer. An unhappy customer is only too happy to talk about their bad experience. We choose to keep our customers happy and get them talking about us for the right reasons.

Q: How would you advise a Mompreneur who is thinking about giving up?

If you believe in yourself and your business and if you have support from your friends and family, then you have the foundation for success. That being said, sometimes things aren’t meant to be and you need to reassess. It’s very hard to let go of something into which you’ve poured your time and energy. But if your business is not profitable or if it’s unmanageable or making you stressed or miserable, then –  even if it’s a good idea – it may just not be the time. Sometimes you have to give it up to make room for something better lurking around the corner.

For more information, visit weetravel.ca. To check out The Modage vacation property, go to modagevancouvervacationrentals.com .

“Business is all about building relationships and that means keeping your customers happy. Some people go into business to make a quick buck. As a result, their financial return is more important to them than the return of their customers. We go out of our way to build customer relationships…”

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