The Parenting Emporium: Parenthood, Shared
“It takes a whole village to
raise a child.”
~ Igbo and Yoruba (Nigeria) Proverb ~
The
Parenting Emporium is a social enterprise that has only one aim — to
help make the parenting journey easier for you. Because parenting is a legacy,
and parenthood, when shared, becomes a whole lot easier.
Thus, The
Parenting Emporium aims to become an industry leader and the primary brand
among discerning consumers interested in parenting and childcare by providing products
and support services that address every family’s concerns relating to
pregnancy, health, nutrition, and education.
We believe that no mother,
father, or caregiver from any walk of life should stand alone. Each person can
benefit from the support and wealth of knowledge offered by others, especially —
but not limited to — those who are considered experts in their respective
fields.
We also believe that each
person involved in every child’s life plays an important role in that
particular child’s development — and that role must be played to the best of
that person’s ability.
Knowing that raising children is a community effort, we aim to take
the lead in creating communities that foster better parenting. It is our
mission to replace systems of misinformation and ignorance with an ecosystem of
parenting tools, and a support system of knowledgeable individuals who will
help people raise better families.
Thus, the Parenting Emporium as a social enterprise aims to provide
parents and caregivers with a venue to discover and avail of premium baby and
childcare brands, and to participate in educational modules, lectures,
workshops, consultations, and other childcare support products and services.
How it all started
Maricel Cua and Beng Feliciano,
the founders of The Parenting Emporium, recall how their concept of a premier, expert-backed
parenting resource hub came about.
“Our story dates back to 2007 when we
were both starting our own families and we were as clueless as any young family
nowadays,” Beng shares. “Back then, even though the Internet already existed,
it was still mostly dial-up, and we primarily sought the familiar support of
friends and family.
“At that time, our most difficult
challenge was breastfeeding, so when the opportunity for us to carry the
world's number one breast pump presented itself, we decided to say ‘yes.’
Little did we know that doing so would lead to so many open doors and windows,
not just for the business, but for helping other moms and their families.
“With Medela as our stage and now, one of our flagship brands, we
slowly built a community around us with our particular way of selling and
supporting — very hands-on, very personal, but without losing our core values of
community, development, security, professionalism and transparency.
“So, it soon became more than
breastfeeding for us. We realized that there are so many more needs out there
for modern-day parents. In particular, we discovered that many parents had questions
about pregnancy, health, nutrition, and education.
Eventually, we found ourselves growing
with these parents ... but because, compared to before, there was actually too
much information out there, we became very picky and discerning when it came to
choosing products and experts to introduce to our mommy friends and customers.
It no longer became a question of where to get the info but more of ‘Which info
should I listen to?’”
Thus, Beng and Maricel found themselves
answering the need for a support system for families that is based on the
knowledge of experts in various fields, and
sustained by premium, parent-recommended products and services. They also
knew that they wanted the business to be about helping others, and not just
making a profit. The result: The
Parenting Emporium.
Products and brands offered
To give you an idea of what The
Parenting Emporium has to offer, here is a list of just some of the products/brands
Beng and Maricel have personally come to love and trust with their own families,
as well as the families of the community that has grown around them — those
that have, in a way, received their “seal of approval”:
·
Baby K’Tan
·
Belly Armor
·
Bios Dynamis*
·
ChewBeads
·
Comflor and
Bebedom Playmats
·
Esensya Productos
Artesanales-Esensya Handcrafted Products*
·
La-Z-Boy
·
Little Luli
·
Medela
·
Mother K All
Natural Baby Wipes
·
Mustela
·
Nature to Nurture
·
Nature’s Farmacy
·
Nipa Foods*
·
Snug-a-Hug
·
… and many more!
(*Also included
in The Parenting Emporium’s list of “Brands That Give Back”)
The Parenting
Emporium/TPE’s expert partners in parenting
When it comes to partners in parenting,
Beng and Maricel have been to many classes themselves as parents and know that there
are those that simply just echo what you can find on the Internet.
“Usually, the mommies in our community
have already read up and surfed the Net,” Maricel explains. “So, we needed experts
in their fields, certified and practicing, who are very genuine and not
sponsored or influenced by big corporations.”
Thus, she and Beng chose The Parenting
Emporium’s partner subject matter experts because they had both theoretical
knowledge and the experience to be
able to give their community not only textbook knowledge nor just anecdotal
wisdom.
“We wanted to make sure that they would
be able to give realistic and practical advice based not only on passion nor
head knowledge, but also based on the realization that there are several ways
to go about achieving a parenting goal,” Maricel emphasizes.
The partner experts were also chosen
based on their values: “They are warm, caring, and approachable, yet they can
give sound, authoritative counsel with no judgment,” Maricel shares.
Below are just some of The Parenting Emporium’s partner experts, who will be making
the right information available to the families in the TPE community on a daily
basis through (1) the forums that will be launched on the TPE website, and (2) the
classes that will be made available on a weekly basis at the Emporium as well
as at partner venue sites (Domuschola International School, Playworks Philippines
and Urban Ashram Manila):
For Pregnancy:
·
Chiqui Brosas-Hahn,
U.S. Certified Childbirth Educator, Labor Coach/Doula and Breastfeeding
Advocate/Financial Adviser (Childbirth Classes)
For Health:
·
Joy Dejos, Wife,
Mother and Certified Professional Coach, known as the “MommyProofing Coach,”
who supports moms in kicking Mommy Guilt and Mommy Judgment to the curb (MommyProofing Classes)
·
Charlene Carlos
and Leona Panutat, “Inspiration-Seekers,” Curators and Owners of L’Indochine (Decluttering and Creating Living Spaces
Classes)
·
Jane
Kingsu-Cheng, Marketing and Image Consultant, Magazine Editor, Manila Bulletin “Style
Kit” Columnist, Blogger at FlatsandStilletos.com and Mom of 3 (“Mommy Styling: The Reboot” Classes)
For Nutrition:
·
Abbie
Venida-Yabot, Certified Lactation Counselor, La Leche League International
Leader, Founder of The Breastfeeding Club, Wellness & Parenting Advocate,
Life Coach and Mother of 4+1 (The
Breastfeeding Club Classes)
·
Jacqueline
Alleje, Chef, Founder and Co-Owner of Rizal Dairy Farms, Healthy Nutrition/Green
Gourmet Culinary Instructor at Moderne Culinaire Academy (Cooking Healthy Workshops)
·
Jon Chua, Chef
Instructor at Magsaysay Institute for Hospitality and Culinary Arts (MIHCA), Chef
and Owner (with wife Raquel) of Mamachows Pastries, Hands-on Father of 3 (Cooking Demonstrations)
·
Joyce Ann Zaragoza-Martinez,
Founder and Owner of Center for Lactation Care, Registered Nurse, International
Board Certified Lactation Consultant (“Breastfeeding
Crash Course” Classes)
For Education:
·
Daisy Lauron and
Jocelyn Godinez of Peek-A-Boo Yaya Training Services, which provides training,
lectures and demos to help yayas meet
the various housekeeping requirements of their employers, plus courses on
newborn and toddler care, basic first aid, safety precautions against various
criminal modus operandi, and breastfeeding support (Yaya Seminars)
·
Dindi
Besinga-Manlapaz, Founder, Meet
the Art Masters Developer, Arts
& Crafts Teacher at Likhangbata Creativity Center, Freelance Graphic Designer, Digital
Artist, Housewife and Mother of 2 (“Meet the Art Masters”
Classes)
·
Ginger Arboleda and
the Manila Workshops Team, a provider of quality lifestyle workshops for
individuals to achieve their personal and professional goals in life (First Time Parents Workshop Series)
·
Mariel Uyquiengco
and Rosanne Unson of The Learning Basket. Mariel is a U.S. licensed Kindermusik
educator and a Certified Positive Discipline Parent Educator, while Rosanne has
taken Literacy units at the University of the Philippines’ Open University. (Parent and “TeacherYaya” Education Classes)
·
Martine de Luna,
Award-winning Blogger at MakeItBlissful.com and Digital Consultant specializing
in Blogging and Social Media (Blogging Workshops)
·
Tanya Velasco, M.A.,
and GURUFIRM, a company that provides Training and Consultancy Services on
early childhood education, family life education, and lifelong learning (Family Life & Child Development Classes)
More than just a
business: Paying it forward and giving back to the community
As firm believers of “giving back” and
the model of social enterprises, Maricel and Beng have set up The Parenting
Emporium such that customers can contribute at various levels and benefit different groups as well.
“A certain percentage from all TPE
purchases go back to our advocacy work,” Maricel explains. “All purchases
directly benefit our advocacies.”
“Social enterprises don’t rely on
international bodies and kind souls to fund their worthwhile projects,” Beng
adds. “Funds for their advocacies are already part of their business model, so
while they grow their businesses, so does the help provided grow. It then
becomes not only the efforts of a few generous souls but of every single
customer who steps foot in the Emporium. As long as the business is alive and
thriving, so, too, will the beneficiaries thrive.”
Besides
the existing start-up social enterprises under TPE’s list of “Brands That Give
Back”, Beng and Maricel will be in constant search for other start-up social
enterprises so that they can be featured in the Emporium.
Aside from these, TPE pledges to work
with local communities through start-ups like WeBoo Inc., which supports bamboo
plantation farmers in Bulacan. WeBoo is one of TPE’s partners for their private
labels, TPE Solutions: Natural Play,
which will be launched in the near future.
“For more traditional beneficiaries, we
have included the causes of our community families such as Lia Mañalac-Castillo’s DiksyonaryoAtbp,
which provides dictionaries, reference books, and storybooks to far-flung
communities that have no access to books and the Internet,” Maricel shares. “And,
of course, something that is very close to our heart: our Milk Sharing Hub,
which has provided over 2,000 liters of donated breastmilk to needy babies.”
“Finally, we pledge to provide free,
safe, and non-judgmental physical as well as online venues for groups under our
advocacies,” Beng emphasizes.
Coming Soon: TPE
Solutions plus so much more!
Supporters of The Parenting Emporium
can be assured that there are many more exciting things coming up for the
social enterprise.
“We will be launching our private
labels soon, namely TPE Solutions,”
Beng shares. “These will be products that provide solutions to common family
concerns such as how to encourage our children to be more active, develop their
gross motor skills and, at the same time, play more outdoors than indoors, and
many others.”
“We will also be launching each
component of the Emporium as the year progresses,” Maricel adds. “We want to
assure you that we are one with you in
this parenting journey, because we believe that parenthood, shared, will become a much lighter ‘load.’ Because parenting is a legacy — the best ‘gift’
we can give to our kids, we want to help make it easier for everyone involved.”
******
Stay up-to-date with The Parenting Emporium
by following us on social media:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/theparentingemporium
Instagram: @theparentingemporium
Or follow these official hashtags (don’t forget
to include them in your social media posts too!):
#ParenthoodShared
#GrowingWithYouAsParents
#BecauseParentingIsALegacy
#TheParentingEmporium
#TheParenthoodJourney
Launching
in October 2015: The Parenting Emporium official website:
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