Hello, Friends of Oolie!
2022 has been a big year for us, filled with new learning, creativity, and the ups and downs of launching a company — highlights being the launch of the our first product, followed by our first sales. (Thanks, friends!)
This year, we dipped a toe into the vast ocean of social media. Under the guidance of our wonderful Head of Social Media, Brittany, we starting establishing our presence on Instagram and Pinterest. Building an audience feels like slow going, but it’s so gratifying to get those positive reactions when our products and ideas resonate with other moms. ♥️
This year we formalized the expression of our corporate values and made formal commitments to promote those values. We submitted our initial self-assessment to B Lab as part of our B Corp certification process, and we are proud to have Pending B Corp status. We also successfully navigated the stringent process of securing Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certification for our first bedding products. This is the gold standard of organic certifications, and we are proud to join the community of GOTS-certified suppliers!
This year also brought its fair share of challenges, from ongoing political unrest (domestically and abroad) to the now-undeniable effects of climate change, compounding ongoing disruptions of the pandemic.
Besides the emotional toll these events took on us personally, Oolie — as a business — felt the impact of interruptions to the supply chain and unexpected spikes in materials and shipping costs. In early 2022, one of our manufacturing partners tragically lost their organic certification, not through any fault of their own (the products and processes were still organic), but due to their certifying authority itself being decertified.
Framed more positively, 2022 has offered endless opportunities for learning and navigating myriad business decisions nimbly and gracefully.
Finally, our most exciting moment 2022 saw the launch of our first product, the Oolie Shoosh. We were thrilled to partner with Portland Garment Factory (woman-owned! B-Corp! local! amazing!) to develop and produce this beautifully designed and functional object.
As we look to the coming year, we are bursting at the seams with excitement over our next steps. On the horizon, we anticipate the launch of at least four additional products: the Oolie Nest, Organic Sheet Sets, Organic Crib Sheets, and our Footed Sleep Sack. We look forward as well to new partnerships with wonderful GOTS and Fair Trade business partners. (You’ll find out who in 2023!)
Thank you, friends, for accompanying us on this first phase of our journey. We wish you a happy and fresh New Year!
Sleep well,
Nora
Photo credits: Kelli McClintock on Unsplash, Trisha Downing on Unsplash, Portland Garment Factory, and Tatiana Syrikova
