A Mighty Mother: Babies Fall In Love With Baby Einstein
A Mighty Mother: Babies Fall In Love With Baby Einstein
Along with her husband, Aigner-Clark borrowed a friend’s video camera and headed into her basement to film what would become the first of many Baby Einstein videos. With her baby as the live audience, her cat as a prop, and her husband as the videographer, the pair set out to create their vision.
It might have been a simple video – after all, Aigner-Clark’s hand puppet had not taken long to create – but it was effective. Aigner-Clark brought in everything from mothers speaking different languages to the music of Mozart and Bach. She wanted to create a video that not only challenged the newborns who would be watching it, but that also made the experience fun for parents.
After filming, production, and packaging, the entire cost of the initial film was $18,000. It was money that had come straight out of the pockets of Aigner-Clark and her husband. But despite their confidence in their new product, Aigner-Clark found it difficult to bring in the sales.
Turned down by many retailers, Aigner-Clark decided to hit the floors of toy trade shows to get the word out about her product. Still, she found it difficult to find people who shared her enthusiasm. Finally, however, Aigner-Clark was able to convince a buyer from The Right Stuff, a high-end toy retailer, to stock a few trial copies of her video in their stores. When they sold out within three days, The Right Stuff agreed to sign an exclusive deal with Aigner-Clark. Baby Einstein videos were now being distributed in 34 stores across the country, and selling out fast.
In the first year of sales, Aigner-Clark not only recouped her initial investment, but she made more than $100,000. One year later, she released her second video, “Baby Mozart,” which pushed the company’s sales over the $1 million mark.
As the company grew, Aigner-Clark maintained a staff of no more than eight people at any one time. She also did not spend any money on marketing and advertising. “During the first five and a half years, we never ran an ad,” she says. “The videos made babies happy. Parents told their friends. News articles and publicity opportunities came to us.”
After five years of making videos, Aigner-Clark’s company was drawing in sales of over $20 million. As the business began to take over her life, she began to think about selling. When Disney agreed to her offer, she gave up her baby and went back to working as a full-time mom. Disney continues to build the brand, which today is worth over $1 billion.
But the entrepreneurial instinct in Aigner-Clark would not sit quiet. She quickly moved on to her next venture, The Safe Side, in which she created a series of educational videos to teach children about safety issues. Much harder to get off the ground than Baby Einstein, Aigner-Clark was also saddled with the challenge of dealing with breast cancer.
Now, a proud breast cancer survivor, Aigner-Clark continues to focus on making The Safe Side a hit. Thus far, its first video has sold over 140,000 copies. She has also launched Memory Lane, a series of videos that helps entertain Alzheimer’s patients. Aigner-Clark has also created Aigner Clark Creative, a consulting firm that helps bring value to non-profit organizations.
Today, Aigner-Clark is the recipient of Ernst & Young’s ‘Entrepreneur of the Year Award,’ as well as Working Mother’s ‘Entrepreneur of the Year Award.’
A Mighty Mother Babies Fall In Love With Baby Einstein
Like this article? Share it with your friends
“The first Baby Einstein video took off because it was a completely new concept,” says Aigner-Clark. “It was an entirely new idea. No one else had videos for babies.”
Along with her husband, Aigner-Clark borrowed a friend’s video camera and headed into her basement to film what would become the first of many Baby Einstein videos. With her baby as the live audience, her cat as a prop, and her husband as the videographer, the pair set out to create their vision.
It might have been a simple video – after all, Aigner-Clark’s hand puppet had not taken long to create – but it was effective. Aigner-Clark brought in everything from mothers speaking different languages to the music of Mozart and Bach. She wanted to create a video that not only challenged the newborns who would be watching it, but that also made the experience fun for parents.
After filming, production, and packaging, the entire cost of the initial film was $18,000. It was money that had come straight out of the pockets of Aigner-Clark and her husband. But despite their confidence in their new product, Aigner-Clark found it difficult to bring in the sales.
Turned down by many retailers, Aigner-Clark decided to hit the floors of toy trade shows to get the word out about her product. Still, she found it difficult to find people who shared her enthusiasm. Finally, however, Aigner-Clark was able to convince a buyer from The Right Stuff, a high-end toy retailer, to stock a few trial copies of her video in their stores. When they sold out within three days, The Right Stuff agreed to sign an exclusive deal with Aigner-Clark. Baby Einstein videos were now being distributed in 34 stores across the country, and selling out fast.
In the first year of sales, Aigner-Clark not only recouped her initial investment, but she made more than $100,000. One year later, she released her second video, “Baby Mozart,” which pushed the company’s sales over the $1 million mark.
As the company grew, Aigner-Clark maintained a staff of no more than eight people at any one time. She also did not spend any money on marketing and advertising. “During the first five and a half years, we never ran an ad,” she says. “The videos made babies happy. Parents told their friends. News articles and publicity opportunities came to us.”
After five years of making videos, Aigner-Clark’s company was drawing in sales of over $20 million. As the business began to take over her life, she began to think about selling. When Disney agreed to her offer, she gave up her baby and went back to working as a full-time mom. Disney continues to build the brand, which today is worth over $1 billion.
But the entrepreneurial instinct in Aigner-Clark would not sit quiet. She quickly moved on to her next venture, The Safe Side, in which she created a series of educational videos to teach children about safety issues. Much harder to get off the ground than Baby Einstein, Aigner-Clark was also saddled with the challenge of dealing with breast cancer.
Now, a proud breast cancer survivor, Aigner-Clark continues to focus on making The Safe Side a hit. Thus far, its first video has sold over 140,000 copies. She has also launched Memory Lane, a series of videos that helps entertain Alzheimer’s patients. Aigner-Clark has also created Aigner Clark Creative, a consulting firm that helps bring value to non-profit organizations.
Today, Aigner-Clark is the recipient of Ernst & Young’s ‘Entrepreneur of the Year Award,’ as well as Working Mother’s ‘Entrepreneur of the Year Award.’
A Mighty Mother Babies Fall In Love With Baby Einstein
Like this article? Share it with your friends
| |||
 |
No article feedback found. | ||
|
Leave Your Feedback | ||
|
|||
 Lesson #1: Look To A Need That Is Right Under Your Nose
| |||
 “Before Baby Einstein, I was an English major in college and after that I was a teacher in high school and left when I had my first baby,” says Aigner-Clark. “At that time, there was nothing that existed that was fu... |
|||
|
The Ultimate Mompreneur: Julie Aigner-Clark Gets Her Start
| |||
| She never wanted to run her own business; she just wanted to be the best mom she knew how to be. But today, what began as a single children’s educational video that she filmed in her basement with a friend’s camera ... |
|||
|
Lesson #4: Every Entrepreneur Needs a Little Brand Aid
| |||
| According to Clark, the secret to Baby Einstein’s success has been “a good concept and a brilliant branding strategy.” |
|||
|
Creating a Billion Dollar Baby Empire: How Julie Aigner-Clark Achieved Success
| |||
| “There was nothing on the market that I felt was any good, so I decided to make something myself.” That was Aigner-Clark’s reasoning for starting her now wildly successful series of children’s educational videos, Ba... |
|||
|
Lesson #3: Get Word Of Your Business Out There
| |||
| “We didn’t spend any money on marketing and advertising,” recalls Aigner-Clark. So just how exactly did her basement operation become the billion dollar industry leader that it is today? What it all came down to, sh... |
|||
| |||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
 |
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
 |
 | ||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
|
| ||
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
|
 |
 Ideal Client Interview Coaching Think Networking Radio Campaigns Human Resources Checklist |
|
 | ||
 |
Top 50 Blogs For Startups
Top Blogs To Watch In 2009 | |
 |
Email The Reporters
Press Release Builder | |
| ||
 |
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
|
||||||||||
