The idea of a single mother’s all-in-one travel cot spawned a company with over $1.1 million in sales.
Johanna Constable of Tweed Beach in New South Wales launched Pilanky in March 2009 after listening to the needs of parents while selling handmade goods at local monthly markets.
The folding bed is the brand’s ‘hero product’ and features a comfortable mattress, pillow, removable double sheet and blanket.
From humble beginnings, the 50-year-old actress earned just $5,000 in her first year, and now the brand manages over $200,000 a year.
Single mom Johanna Constable (pictured) from Tweed Beach in New South Wales launched Pilanky in March 2009 after listening to parents’ needs while selling handmade items at local monthly markets.
The folding mattress is the brand’s ‘hero product’ and features a comfortable mattress, pillows, removable double-wide sheets and blankets (photo)
The brand also sells a portable diaper bag (pictured) that includes a waterproof lining, two towels and rings, Paw Paw ointment, baby wipes, and disposable diaper bags.
Johanna told Daily Mail Australia: “I thought it would be great to have an all-in-one bed with removable sheets and machine washable blankets so parents can carry everything more easily.”
Before Johanna started, she knew she didn’t want to go back to her corporate job and take care of her daughter Rosana.
“I especially wanted to spend quality time with my daughter and have a roof over our heads. I also like sewing,” said Johanna, and soon she was making the product.
As a single non-working mother, she relied on Centrelink payments and said the beginning was a “war”.
He bought fabric from Spotlight and only invested “a few hundred dollars” to keep the business running, because it was all he could afford.
Before launching the brand, Johanna knew she didn’t want to go back to her corporate business and take care of her daughter Rosana (pictured together).
The busy mother made cozy blankets while her daughter slept and sold the products at monthly markets.
“It was a struggle at first and I had to live extremely frugal,” he said, adding that “it was a long and difficult road.”
The first year he made just $5,000 as the markets were rare, but the second year he made $15,000 and after moving to the Gold Coast in 2012 he made $50,000 a year.
“I sell in the markets three times a week instead of once a month,” he said.
He earned $150,000 in 2017 by airing a TV commercial showing exactly what the product is and how it works.
He has since been selling the products exclusively online, and word has spread.
“I’m a pretty positive person, so I never thought of giving up,” she said.
In 2017, he launched a television commercial to show exactly what the product is and how it works, and spent $150,000 (pictured by his daughter on one of the beds)
“I especially wanted to spend quality time with my daughter and have a roof over our heads. I also loved sewing,” said Johanna (photo)
Today, Johanna continues to make products by hand on her beloved sewing machine, with the help of two part-time women who help prepare the fabric.
“I work 12 hours a day, 80 hours a week but I enjoy what I do and can shape my days around my daughter,” she said.
Johanna has expanded her product line and now produces miniature Pilanky blankets, Pilanky pet blankets and more.
In 2019 the brand won a silver medal at the AusMumpreneur regional awards and was a gold finalist in 2020.
Source: Daily Mail
