Entrepreneur magazine has named Allen Kim, an industrial operations engineering major at the University of Michigan, the College Entrepreneur of 2010, for his startup company Bebarang, which is best described as "Netflix for baby clothes": University of Michigan student named Entrepreneur magazine's College Entrepreneur of the Year.The idea came into his head last year when his aunt, who had a baby, was complaining about how expensive baby clothes were. Drawing inspiration from the movie mail rental service Netflix, he's found a way for parents to dress their babies at a low rental rate:
After some serious research, which included discussions with more than 100 moms, it really came down to the numbers.Pretty impressive, in that hey-why-didn't-I-think-of-that kind of way -- especially since the guy is still in college. Bebarang is currently beta testing, with plans to officially launch sometime next year. More here: 'Netflix for baby clothes' founder named College Entrepreneur of the Year by national magazine.
"It's a $25 billion industry," Kim says. "The average kid outgrows baby clothes 16 times, which works out to be about $150 every two months on things that might be worn just a few times."
Party clothes cost the most but are worn the least. Bebarang offers special occasion baby clothes from premium designers like Burberry and Ralph Lauren.
"Moms will save money, and their babies will still look great," he says. "It's a win-win."
