Deal seals growing future for baby firm

KELLY HODEL/Waikato Times

SOFT TOUCH: Kathryn Fromont with her son, Tom, a big fan of mahu skin products.

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Hamilton baby skincare company mahu has grown up, signing on with Progressive Enterprises to supply its core range to supermarkets throughout New Zealand.

Mahu founder and sales and marketing manager Kathryn Fromont said her products have been stocked in Woolworths, Countdown and Foodtown since late February.

"The Progressive opportunity is a fantastic next step for mahu," said Mrs Fromont.

The products had been available in pharmacies and baby stores but Mrs Fromont said now they were in supermarkets it made it easy for mothers to buy them.

Mrs Fromont, who worked as a midwife for 14 years, launched the business with her brother, Andrew Hugill, after spending two years developing the product with midwives.

There are nine products in the range: four natural vitamin enriched products for mothers including cream for stretchmarks, nipple cream and pure massage oil, as well as five products for newborns.

The company also plans to launch more in the skincare area in both the baby and pregnancy categories within the next year.

Stocks in the supermarkets start from $9.95 and include mahu Baby Wash/Shampoo, Baby Lotion, Nappy Cream, Baby Massage Oil and Baby Moisturiser.

Mrs Fromont said the turning point for the company was a trip to Britain in 2004 with Trade and Enterprise New Zealand where she met Phil&Teds chief executive Campbell Gower. Phil&Teds now have a small shareholding in the company.

"We developed the products for quite some time before the company was launched. Because we had everything right from our market research to our development it progressed quite quickly," she said.

She said getting Mr Gower on board provided expertise and contacts in the industry and experience in branding and marketing products.

The company has trademarked mahu, which means "gentle" in Maori, in New Zealand and Britain.

Mrs Fromont said they hoped to extend mahu into Australia and the United States but they wanted to make sure they had the New Zealand operation working properly first.

- © Fairfax NZ News