Start-up: Little Wonder Company
Founded: 2009
Location: Minneapolis
Key players: Leslie Sell, founder
Funding: Self-funding and venture capital
Web site: littlewondercompany.com
Anyone who thinks that the Amazon Kindle, or for that matter, the Apple iPad (which I desperately want) is going to cannibalize the printed page, needs to talk to my two, three-year-old boys. Seriously. I’ll invite you over to try and convince them to replace their collection of Curious George books with your precious e-reader. Before you could finish saying, the man in the yellow hat, they’d have you pinned down in a full-nelson, crying for mercy, like in a UFC cage match.
It’s not that their that tough, after-all, they’re only three. It’s that they cherish sitting on mommy and daddy’s lap reading books more than mommy and daddy cherish their “quiet time.” I’ll be honest, as a parent, I just don’t see e-readers replacing the beauty of a well-crafted children’s book anytime soon. Quite frankly, I wouldn’t want it to.
That doesn’t mean that the advancements in technology can’t improve a child’s reading experience. It can . . . and it has.
In fact, Leslie Sell, an advertising industry veteran, has spent the past several years developing the perfect combination of technology meets childhood reading. Her business, Little Wonder Company, manufactures highly personalized children’s books using a combination of print on demand (POD) and flash technology, allowing a parent/child to create a storybook character that resembles themselves.
The idea for the product came to her one day in the Winter of 2008, while reading a personalized children’s book with her son. She was asked, “My name is in this book with Elmo, but where am I?” As any person can relate to, sometimes the simplest questions produce the biggest ideas. That question by her son triggered a brilliant thought, “Wouldn’t it be neat if this book was personalized even more by including his picture?” And, the journey began.
Realizing that gaming technology (such as the Nintendo Wii) already had made it possible to allow a player to create custom characters, Sell was convinced there was a way to do it in print. For the next six months, she went in search of different providers that were capable of making her dream into a reality.
It wasn’t without a few hiccups along the way. At one point, she had a printer that offered the on-demand technology she needed, an illustrator for the 1000s of variations required, and a Web development company that could put the software into action. The problem, she discovered, was one that is largely familiar to most entrepreneurs just getting started: Everything was going to cost twice as much as she had originally planned.
With her personal savings quickly diminishing, she went in search of financing. With some valuable advice from Women Venture and a 10–week “Fastrack” entrepreneurship course on developing a business plan, she found an investor that was willing to inject capital in return for equity. Although she wasn’t looking for a partner at the time, she was presented with the option of either, 1) doing it alone and delaying the launch, or 2) take on an equity partner and launch as planned. It turns out, she made the right decision.
While all of this had been taking place, the previous vendors Sell had lined up, all backed out for various reasons, leaving her back at square one. She eventually managed to find new providers with all the skills she needed and opened the proverbial doors to her business on December 10, 2009, as planned.
Although Little Wonder Company launched online just this past December, Sell says that sales are steady. This summer, she’s hoping to have her products available in boutique retailers, while the customization will still remain on her site. A true sign that Sell is a well-informed entrepreneur, she has a very realistic goal of turning a profit in year two.
To learn more about Leslie Sell and her venture, Little Wonder Company, visit littlewondercompany.com.
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