GOING GREEN
Helping parents become eco-friendly Lack of green baby products led to new business
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By Melissa Peaker-Whitten
Photos by Jaclyn Borowski
For Stefanie Bye, running an environmentally friendly business isn’t just a job, it’s a way of life. The Bakersfield native said being eco-conscious has always been important to her, but she has taken her personal convictions one step further, by opening a business that not only provides eco-friendly products, but also educates consumers on how to use them. A junior high school teacher by day, she tries to lead by example, showing her students the choices that are healthy for their minds, bodies and the world they live in. She even went so far as to write a grant to start a recycling program at her school. When she became a mother three years ago, this philosophy naturally extended to her parenting. But she was forced to look online to find environmentally friendly baby products. This meant not being able to try the product before buying it. So when she started Planet Bambini earlier this year, the focus was to give parents the opportunity to find out firsthand which products work best for them, before making a big investment. Currently, her business is about 50 percent online sales and 50 percent consulting. Locally, she meets with prospective customers to show them her products and help them choose what will work best for their family. Although her primary focus at the moment is cloth diapers, she offers other products as well, including re-usable cloth sandwich bags and chemical free baby care products. She is currently putting together trial packages so customers can try a variety 68
Bakersfield Life
July 2011
Stefanie Bye does about half of her business over the Internet.
of different diapering products and then exchange the items that don’t work for them. “I’m really passionate about their use,” said Bye of cloth diapers. “I like teaching people about them — helping them figure out something that will work. I enjoy the problem solving.” According to the Real Diaper Association, it is estimated that it takes 250 to 500 years for disposable diapers to decompose. Just as people are rejecting single-use plastic water bottles and grocery bags in favor of reusable versions, there are an increasing numbers of parents who are choosing reusable diapers. This literally cuts their household waste in half, according to the site. “A lot of people are willing to change things when they have kids,” said Bye. “(My children are) little people, I want to take care of them the best I can, so I am more strict about what goes on their bodies and in their bodies. And I don’t want them to grow up
Planet Bambini Find Planet Bambini online at planetbambini.com And on Facebook at facebook.com/pages/Planet-Bambini/ 145675125494706 For more information about the use of cloth diapers you can check out the following links: realdiaperassociation.org community.babycenter.com/groups/a16235/cloth_diapering