Baby Elephant gets Gloss-iped!

The gorgeous Gloss Magazine featured www.babyelephant.ie  in this months Christmas Party issue with our lovely friend Paula Asple of the brilliant www.mabelandviolet.com.

December GLOSS-IP

Not wanting to turn down a party means going by whatever means, even if it does involve ringing up an old girlfriend, or flying solo. Right now, networking is key and there’s never been a better time to put yourself out there. When you’re a one woman show, it’s even more vital to have a few friends you can call on. MAEVE BARRY and PAULA ASPLE, two Dublin based entrepreneurs (Barry is MD of baby and maternity website www.babyelephant.ie , and Asple is MD of lifestyle shop www.mabelandviolet.com), met and started what they call their own “micro networking group”. They also came up with a clever solution for when one or the other needs a few days away from the office: the concept of  ‘business sitting’. Both started their businesses a year ago and know that in order to weather the current storm, there’s no way they can let their customers down. “One of the most appealing aspects of e-commerce is being open for business 22/7/365″, says Barry, “but ironically, it’s one of the major drawbacks for businesses like ours that don’t have employees”. So if she’s called away, Asple will look after her online shop, and vice versa. They also pool their knowledge and resources, plus it’s a great excuse to meet regularly: “When you work in isolation and spend most of your time online, it’s all too easy to become withdrawn”, explains Asple. “So not only are our meetings helpful from a business perspective, but we both come away feeling positive and energised.” They’ll celebrate being in business one year on and surviving recession with some well earned cocktails at Venu.

December 2009 THE GLOSS MAGAZINE