Orca Communications Client Spotlight: Spunky Stork
Welcome to the Orca Communications PR client spotlight. Each month our clients tell you in their own words why they do what they do and provide tips for other growing small brands and businesses.
Spunky Stork hand prints charming and whimsical designs onto soft organic cotton baby bodysuits and toddler/youth tees. The founders are passionate about creating clean, organic, non-toxic clothing that is safe for all ages, including infants. Co-Founder, Aliya Jiwa, sat down with us to talk about the brand.
How did you come up with the concept for Spunky Stork?
I was going to baby shower after baby shower, and every time a mom-to-be opened presents and passed around the baby rompers, I always felt the material and thought it was too rough or too thin. I started looking into organic cotton baby clothes, for a higher quality gift, but there were no companies that sold fun prints on organic cotton… so I decided to start my own brand.
Your products feature so many fun, creative designs. How do you keep the creativity flowing? How do you organize all of your team’s ideas?
We find inspiration everywhere! We have quarterly meetings about designs where we retire old designs that aren’t converting and discuss ideas that we have gathered for new designs. Our team has a group chat where we share photos and ideas… it can be a color of a wall that someone spots or a font we love from a billboard or a cute dog in the park… once the photo gets shared, the ideas come out and we gather them all in our meetings to see if we can come up with new designs.
Sustainability is obviously very important to you. What is the biggest challenge you’ve had to overcome on your journey to source sustainable materials?
Price! Sourcing certified organic cotton is expensive. The market for many commodities has taken a price hit after the pandemic, coupled with global inflation, keeping the price low for our customers is always a priority, but it’s the biggest challenge we have. As standards for organic cotton get more rigorous and supply shortages become more common, making sure we plan ahead for inventory is a constant challenge.
Not only do you care about the quality and safety of your materials, but also about the people behind the process – in particular, the cotton farmers. How do you decide on suppliers?
We only work with suppliers who are vetted by organic cotton regulatory agencies. They make sure that the requirements and standards set for each manufacturing component – from the cotton growers to the shippers and packers are all adhering to strict quality levels throughout their entire process. This makes it easy for us to ensure we are working with companies who have fair trade labor practices in place for the farmers, and also guarantees that we get the highest quality organic cotton clothes with the lowest possible carbon footprint.
What’s your one piece of advice for other mission-driven entrepreneurs?
Make sure your mission is your passion. You will always be successful working on something you love.
Now for a question I ask all of our clients. Name one thing you like about working with Orca Communications.
Everything is so easy with Orca. You guys are so organized and the features just roll in. Our website traffic and conversion rate have both increased after hiring Orca, and most of what Orca does is measurable with our analytics, so I know we are having an impact on our ROI, and that makes me so happy.
Are there any specific projects or designs you’re working on right now that you’d like to share?
We are working on holiday 2022 right now, but it’s a bit too early to share 😉
“Not all children’s apparel brands are created equal. It is a pleasure to work with a company that has a true passion for creating not only adorable children’s clothing but items that are safe, non-toxic, and sustainable. The Spunky Stork is a leader in high-quality apparel, their creativity supersedes competitors, and they are known for top-notch customer service. The media’s response over the years is a true testament to The Spunky Stork’s fun, happy and whimsical designs with features on TinyBeans, VeryWell Family, Entertainment Weekly, Yahoo, Food Network, Woman’s Day, Red Tricycle, Green Living, and Motherly, just to name a few.” – Michelle Molison, Publicist – Orca Communications