I AM IN AWE OF THE MANY INCREDIBLE MUMS OUT THERE, DOING A FAB JOB OF RUNNING THEIR OWN SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSES WHILST SIMULTANEOUSLY HOLDING DOWN THE FORT AT HOME. I’M FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO HAVE ‘MET’ MANY OF THESE LADIES ONLINE AND CAN’T WAIT TO INTRODUCE YOU TO SOME NEW FACES AND THEIR AWESOME ENTREPRENEURIAL ENDEAVOURS. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO GET INVOLVED AND HAVE YOUR BUSINESS FEATURED, PLEASE SAY HELLO! MELISSA@THEBESTNEST.CO.NZ
Whether you’re a homeschooler, a mum of mainstream schooled kids, a kindy mum, caregiver or a grandparent enjoying a sleepover on weekends, you will undoubtedly be packing a lunchbox at some point or other. The standard kiwi lunch box is fast becoming an endangered species as more and more parents discover the internationally trending Bento-style lunchboxes. (Not sure what I’m talking about? Take a look here for some bento inspo).
Justyne, Mum of three, is a veritable Bento expert. She is the owner of the one-stop lunchbox shop, The Creative Lunchbox and has carefully curated a covetable range of kid friendly lunch products that will leave that Glad® ClingWrap in the drawer for good!
Let’s meet Justyn in her own words;
Tell us a little about what led you to launch The Creative Lunchbox
I launched The Creative Lunchbox after shopping for a lunchbox for my nephew and noticing a distinct lack of quality litterfree lunch options available in the NZ market. After a huge amount of research on what is available, The Creative Lunchbox was born. We offer a range of products that support wastefree lunches, many of which are exclusive to us in NZ.
Mum’s (and kids!) LOVE the bento/litterless lunchbox phenomenon, what’s the attraction and what are the benefits?
The Bento phenomenon; you are right it is starting to explode. Schools are becoming more environmentally savvy and many are embracing “litterfree” policies. Bento has been a way of life in Japan for many years. Mums there have found that being creative with food presentation in their kids lunchboxes makes healthy food much more attractive for kids to eat. The distinct lack of waste such as plastic wrap and foil is an added bonus because not only are we saving money by not using these products, we are also helping the environment. No fumbling for fingers either having to unwrap food. It’s an easy solution, the same wrapped healthy food presented in a creative manner with no packaging makes kids want to eat what is in front of them. My own kids lunchboxes rarely come home with food waste anymore.
What are your favorite products in stock right now?
My favourite products in stock right now are our Bentology Lunchboxes and our awesome Juice In The Box – A revolutionary patented designed reusable drink box. It’s safe, completely chemical free, easy to clean and comes in four awesome colours kids will love.
How do you manage the work/life balance now that you’re your own boss?
Being your own boss is fun. I have three daughters and we live in a rural location so working from home makes sense for us. My kids are busy with activities and we also have an electrical business and a farm (life is busy). Managing the work / life balance can be tricky at times and very hectic trying to fit everything in but generally most of my working time is when my youngest (11 month old) has her day sleep and in the evenings when the house is quiet. Working from home is a balance just like any other job. Family first then work, things like housework often have to take a backseat….one day I dream of having a cleaner … lol 😉
What’s ahead for The Creative Lunchbox?
What’s next, well 2015 is going to be a big year for us. We are researching plenty of amazing products, hopefully some of which we will be able to bring to NZ. We are a new business so it’s about getting the word out there about how awesome and top quality our products are. Our aim is to not only have them available on our website but also in stores throughout the country.
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