Businesses to corner the baby market

About 65,000 babies are born in Ireland every year and over 130m globally, with parents here spending up to €5,000 on baby products in that first year. That’s a big market.

For BubbleBum founder Grainne Kelly, the idea for her business arose when she found car rental companies didn’t provide booster seats for a trip in the UK. “When I suggested an inflatable seat they laughed at me,” she says.

Ms Kelly contacted crash test laboratories in the UK. She was told that an inflatable seat would not pass a safety test. Undeterred, she flew to China in 2009, got a prototype made and within nine months had brought the product from concept to launch.