Kiwi-owned nappy company Rascal+Friends was started by a brother-and-sister duo in Hamilton in July 2016, and in the past year, their homegrown brand has gone from selling direct to the public via their website rascalandfriends.co.nz to a major and exclusive deal to stock their nappies at New World and PAK’nSAVE supermarkets nationwide.
Grant Taylor and Louise Stainthorpe had the idea for Rascal+Friends following the birth of Louise’s third child and her disappointment in other nappy brands she’d tried over the years. Grant’s business, logistics, and project development background proved to be the perfect complement to his sister’s desire for a premium-quality, stylish, affordable nappies to make her life – and all new parents’ lives – easier.
After three years of developing, sourcing, and testing (particularly on Louise’s boys), the original Rascal+Friends nappies were born on 8 July 2016 – the same day that Louise’s fourth son arrived!
The siblings weren’t content to call it a day, and continued to refine their nappy design, while Rascal+Friends started to become a cult favourite of Kiwi mums and dads. A year later, Louise and Grant have recently launched a second-generation nappy with innovative features, including a high waistband to help prevent up-the-back leaks and “poonamis”, a breathable back-sheet to help keep baby’s skin dry, feather-soft non-woven absorbency layer to help with liquid dispersion so your baby’s skin won’t be irritated from wetness, and an absorbency channel which increases the absorbent area of the nappy by up to 40%.
The funky design of white “kisses” on a green background is a major selling point for parents who prefer the more stylish look and feel of Rascal+Friends nappies, which many mums think are just too cute to cover up with clothing in the warmer months. The ink is water-based and formaldehyde-free, and the nappies also use less tape and packaging, making them as earth-friendly as a convenient disposable nappy can be.
The team are currently developing a nappy-pants range, and working on designing their own baby wipes. Tested on real Kiwi babies, Rascal+Friends nappies are living up to their name of “the cool new kids on the nappy block!”
Rascal+Friends are the new cool kids on the nappy block. Check us out on Facebook, we’re a little different. Available exclusively through New world and PAK’nSAVE supermarkets.
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