Aren’t babies sweet? They smell good, they make lovely noises, they’re so small, and you can’t help but smile when you see one. But they’re also kinda scary. Any mom or dad will tell you that as lovely as each baby can be, they also turn into ninjas on a dime, bent on thwarting your every effort.
There are so many aspects to caring for a new baby that it can be entirely overwhelming. The old adage really is true, it takes a village to raise a child. That philosophy is the heart of a baby boutique in Plano called Nappy Shoppe.
Owner Sharni Vaughan, a native from the “land down under,” moved to Texas from Melbourne, Australia. She graduated with a degree in Agricultural Science and once held a job milking over 300 cows. University gave her skills in technology, and in the ‘90’s she taught farmers how to use computers. She met a guy online, “back before people knew what the internet was,” and fell in love. They married and started a family with three children. Life kept them in Australia for a while before ending up in Texas.
Sharni got a surprise in 2008 when she found she was having a fourth child. A web designer at the time, she started making cloth diapers and inserts for her newest addition. After several friends and friends of friends kept asking her to make them a few as well, she decided to start selling her wares online.
There was a niche there, and it was the start of Nappy Shoppe (nappy is the Australian term for diaper). Sharni sold from her home for a while, but had so much success and so many orders to fill that by 2010, she moved her inventory into a warehouse. She also hosted a weekly meet-up for moms to shop and bring their babies to socialize. Fueled by her vices of coffee and vegemite (an Australian food comparable to marmite or savory jelly), Sharni moved the shop from the warehouse into a storefront in 2012.
It was on a regular moms’ meet-up day that Sharni met Cheyenne Martin. Cheyenne, a mother to three girls and interested in natural parenting and eco-friendly cloth diapers, was offered a job on the spot from Sharni when she was able to jump in and help another mother with the proper technique for using a particular baby carrier. Cheyenne has been with Nappy Shoppe since, and is currently the store manager and a Certified Lactation Counselor.
Nappy Shoppe is truly an exceptional baby boutique. It offers a wide variety of natural parenting products: baby slings and carriers, teething toys and jewelry, cloth diapers and diapering accessories, breastfeeding supplies, nursing bras, toys, and books from local authors.
Nappy Shoppe is wicked awesome because each employee is a specialist in one or more departments. Have a question on which carrier is best for you and your ninja of a baby? They have a specialist for that. Need help getting the hang of cloth diapering your tiny ninja? They have someone who’s an expert on that as well. Every member of the staff is a Bravado nursing bra certified fitter. Nappy Shoppe takes immense pride in making sure the customer walks away with exactly what he or she needs to succeed as a parent, not just something that might sorta work once they get home.
The best part of Nappy Shoppe is something that can’t be bought though. The shop offers FREE classes several days a week on a variety of topics in their two private classrooms: correct car seat installation, breastfeeding support, cloth diapering, baby wearing, moms and dads groups, yoga and fitness, post-partum depression and much more. See a complete list of classes here.
Sharni and Cheyenne both agree that Nappy Shoppe is more than a store, it’s a community. Their customers often become their friends, and sometimes come in just to hang out at the shop. On any given day, you’ll see a plethora of children around. Many are the employees’ children that they bring to work with them, and some are little ones there for a class or play date.
Sharni brags that she has “a kick butt staff” that all look out for the kiddos in the store. They are an eclectic group of people from differing backgrounds and parenting philosophies, but they all adhere to the village concept. Having 14 moms and one dad on staff, there is no question that goes unanswered when customers need experienced help.
All moms and dads in Plano need to hear about this unique store and its amazing community. The support groups and educational classes arm parents with the knowledge they need to make raising ninjas so much less scary.
Nappy Shoppe Website >
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