A Mighty Mother: Babies Fall In Love With Baby Einstein

“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

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