Victoria Ruppersbury, Mumpreneur winner 2011
Victoria Ruppersbury, Mumpreneur winner 2011

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The entries were amazing, and yet again we were overwhelmed with your creativity. But despite receiving loads of fantastic ideas, there could only be one overall winner from our shortlist of five. And the Hippychick Mumpreneur 2011 is...


Victoria Ruppersbury, 31, from Somerset, is mum to Emily, eight, Hannah, six, Katie, four, and Joshua, two. It was after potty training three of her own children, as well as helping train her nephews and nieces, that Victoria came up with the Potty Mat. ‘I felt there was a need for a product that helps make potty training easier, fun, less messy and more hygienic,’ says Victoria. Her winning idea in the Everyday category was for a moulded mat that will catch any near misses as your toddler starts to train, is easy to clean and sports fun artwork to keep your child occupied as he sits there!
There were seven runners-up in total, who all had some very clever ideas:

Everyday Essentials finalist and mum-of-one Alexandra Cruikshank came up with the Ice Ice Baby Bamboo Teether, a natural, soothing teether made out of bamboo fabric with carefully places knots designed to be dipped in water and then frozen to create a cool, antibacterial surface for baby to chew on.

Finalists in the Sleep category were mum-of-two Emma Lancaster and mum to Isabella, Naomi Wickins. Emma’s idea was Snuggle Huggle Sheets - an all-in-one waterproof bed protector designed to keep every area of the bed dry. Naomi came up with The Cuddle – an adaptable sleeping bag that allows parents to popper on (or off) extra layers to make it quickly adaptable to climate and conditions.

The Play category finalists were mum of five Catherine Curtis, and mum of Mason, Sophie Wetton. Catherine came up with the idea of a pyramid-shaped soft fabric BabyHub Portable Play Pen, which can be folded up , carried and re-erected one-handed. Sophie’s idea was the Rocket Launch Walker, a rocket-shaped wheeled walker that doubles as an activity toy with flashing lights, sounds, and shape sorter windows.

Finalists in the Out and About category included mums of two Emma Trevillion, and Sally Millard. Emma came up with the Baby Blend ultra compact hand blender, which is battery powered, lidded and small enough to carry in a change bag, so parents can blend food when they’re out and about. Sally created the Pram Mobile Phone Charger to utilise the energy generated by pushing a pram to discreetly charge your mobile while you’re walking with baby, so you need never be out of touch.


To find out more about Hippychick's innovative products - many of which have been invented by parents - visit hippychick.com
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