Hidden Gems: Meet Nicole Zarabi of Cole & Gwen

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicole Zarabi.

Hi Nicole, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
In January of 2020, my husband and I made the decision to escape the New York winter and spend the entire winter with our two-year-old daughter in Los Angeles. We were both looking for a change of scenery and knew that this was the perfect time to do this before our daughter started a permanent school the following year.

After the first week of being here, I knew that this was the place I wanted to be a permanent residence of and raise my family. It was everything from the weather, lifestyle, culture, entertainment, dining, and people that just made Los Angeles a magical place. I was in real estate when living in NY and wanted to initially pursue that career path once settled in Los Angeles. Three months after arriving, the covid pandemic hit and everything shifted. There were various unknowns and challenges, and everyone had to learn to adapt to this new and unfamiliar change. The shutdown could of absolutely been looked at as a curse in the moment, however, that played as a huge learning opportunity for me and my career path as to what was to come next. I realized that real estate was not something I’m passionate about to make my full-time career. I always knew that I wanted to be an entrepreneur and most importantly-wake up to something that I love and enjoy doing every single day. I had always been looking into my daughter’s feeding gear and toys and thinking of ways that I would enhance them if they were to be done differently. I was a big fan of one of her feeding items that we used multiple times a day, and that was her silicone bib.

However, throughout all her meals and snacks, she had a tendency to keep pulling the bib off and throwing It on the floor in the middle of feeding. That in turn caused a lot of frustration, more clothing changes, and more time cleaning the mess. Like so many other entrepreneurs, my journey started with the search for a solution. I wanted a safe eco-friendly bib that stayed on! After scouring the internet for the specific product, I was searching for and coming up empty, I decided to take matters into my own hands; and with that, Cole & Gwen was “born.” I knew exactly what I wanted to achieve in redesigning the classic silicone bib: it had to be comfortable (babies and toddlers will not stand for anything less), safe, secure, and also aesthetically appealing. I wanted more neutral tones and chic prints – basically calming, elevated and versatile looks that could go with, or at least not clash with any outfit. However, the most important aspect was to functionally design a bib that actually stayed on until the child was done with feeding-and with that, I created the first silicone bib with a snap-on enclosure! Between multiple drawings, engineering, and testing the project took eighteen months to develop with my manufacturer overseas. Several months before the product arrived, I had to face one of the bigger challenges. That was searching for the right person or company to make the storytelling, branding, and website come to life.

After much searching, I didn’t feel that I had met the right candidates to get my messaging across. That’s when by chance a good friend of mine heard my struggles and introduced me to Lauren. When we had first connected during our phone conversation, Lauren was able to understand everything I had in mind for this company. Between each of her presentations to our meetings, we were able to gather and execute many ideas to bring Cole & Gwen from an idea to reality. We recently launched in October of 2022 and worked with our manufacturer to launch with an organized called baby2baby: for every one bib purchased, we donate one bib to them to help underprivileged children in need.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Since I had to design this product and have it executed overseas, I would say that was one of the biggest challenges. I had to be very careful who I was speaking to about the product, as I didn’t want another manufacturer to copy the idea. I filed a provisional patent application at that point and made the companies I was speaking to sign confidentiality agreements. It took a few months of a lot of research to find the manufacturer that we are working with now. She was very diligent from the beginning and took all the right steps and measures to make sure the product came out as anticipated. She also helped with the designs and the colors. There was a lot of trial and error when doing this. Since they are located in China and they have about a 12-hour time difference, I had to interact with them during late-night hours here in California. Due to Covid, there were also many delays in getting the samples and shipping delays.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Cole & Gwen?
Cole & Gwen strives to be a baby & toddler company that focuses on safety and functionality for the everyday parent. We plan to expand our line in the near future with innovative products that make parenting easier and stress free. We are the first company to make and design a silicone bib with a snap on enclosure.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
I have really enjoyed living in Los Angeles while designing this product and watching the company come to life. I love this city because of its cultural diversity, the beautiful landscape such as the beaches and mountains, the all inclusive food culture, and all the outdoor activities and museums. I can say what i dont love is the daily traffic that can get draining at times, but there are many pros that outweigh the cons!

Pricing:

• Solid Bib $13.95
• Printed Bib $14.95
• Set of Two From $24.95-27.95

Contact Info:

• Website: www.coleandgwen.com
• Instagram: @coleandgwen
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/people/Cole-Gwen/100086158914165/
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@coleandgwenbaby

Image Credits
Loreen Sarkis From Sarkis Photography