Wilhelmina Iimene
Babies and children love toys, but it seems 36-year-old Gabi Erni loves them more. So much so that she opened ‘My Little Tribe’, a toy company, in 2020.
She makes and sells dummy clips and teethers for babies and toddlers, tepee tents, swings and cot mobiles.
Born and bred in Tsumeb, Erni went to Cape Town to study travel and tourism after completing high school at Delta. Upon returning to Namibia, she worked for a travel agency in Windhoek before starting her own travel consulting agency, and has been working for herself since then.
Leading up to the birth of her business, she made a tepee tent for her own children and when posted on social media, it received a lot of interest from viewers, and that was followed by numerous orders. The tents can be used for indoor and outdoor play. They are handmade from strong material to endure all kinds of free play.
During the pandemic in 2020, the country went into lockdown and her agency’s income diminished considerably due to Covid-19 regulations, which also restricted travel around the country. However, Erni took advantage of her creativity to make a business out of it.
“It became an outlet for me to focus my thoughts and emotions into something creative, and to keep me busy,” she told VIBEZ!
Erni said she got motivated to fully venture into the toy business after seeing there was little of such a business in Namibia.
She said the dummy clips idea was inspired by her children.
“I bought one for my daughter when she was a baby, and I always collected ideas on designs. Finally, I took the leap in July 2020 to look for wholesale suppliers, and I found a few in South Africa.” She thus ordered her first stock of beads, made her first dummies, and they were all quickly sold out.
Her items are hand-made, according to the design preferences of her clients.
The toddler swing is the newest addition to her store, and is currently a popular product and in high demand.
Erni also does custom-made baby gift boxes, which are perfect for moms or friends who need something for birthdays or baby shower events. More items can be added to the box and made according to one’s budget.
Since the pandemic regulations have been lifted, Erni is back to her full-time job as a consultant at her travel agency, and runs the toy store as a side-hustle.
However, ‘My Little Tribe’ has grown tremendously and is slowly becoming a full-time job, she added.
Her online shop will be launching soon, but her products are found at Trendhaus Swakopmund. She recently also signed a deal with Nel’s Baby and Kiddies Shop in Windhoek. Reach out to Gabi Erni on her Instagram page: @mylittletribe_namibia or 081 309 3496 to place an order. -imenewilly@gmail.com