Behind The Brand: Zarpar Bebe

Jemma is the mum to three youngsters and the creative genius (founder and owner) of Zarpar Bebê baby carriers–created by Jemma to provide a beautiful, simple and ethical solution for those mindful parents on a journey through natural parenting practices.

Here, Jemma explains how the intensity of nurturing a newborn became the birth of her wonderful business ...

Zarpar Bebê was actually conceived out of your early parenting struggles. Can you explain?

I gave birth to my first son I June 2014. It was a beautiful whirlwind of a home birth and I felt confident going into my motherhood journey, but I was sent a reality check and found I was not prepared at all for the intensity of nurturing a newborn. The level of freedom and identity I felt I lost after his birth was overwhelming. He was a complete koala baby, he would not sleep without his mama’s touch.

Practically tied to the couch all day every day, the feelings of frustration, loneliness and failure became overwhelming.

I discovered baby wearing and it changed my world, finding the freedom I thought I had lost. It finally brought adventure and connection to nature back to my days.

But it quickly became jaded as the baby carriers I found were never quite right. Most of them were extremely bulky, some were painful to wear. Most were made of synthetic sweaty fabrics and in our hot Australian summers was less than ideal. And none of the brands I found stood by an ethical or sustainable standpoint on manufacturing.

Once my second baby arrived in 2016–another gorgeous koala baby-I needed to solve my baby wearing dilemma. I needed something that was easy to use and breathable. Beautiful design was now also a factor–as after feeling like a utilitarian mum for all that time in my previous black and grey carriers, it was time to feel like me again.

I have a true passion for natural and raw textiles and after countless weeks I was able to source some of the most stunning handwoven fabrics from a beautiful and remote Nepalese community.

My close friend loaned me her sewing machine, and I sat down to create my new Baby Carrier. I fell in love with my new carrier and so did all the mamas around me and that was just the beginning of the Zarpar Bebê journey.

Today, thousands of mamas in all corners of the globe are enjoying their Zarpar Bebê carriers and it brings me so much pride and joy that I have been able to help so many families throughthese challenging, yet beautiful years!

Zarpar Bebê ’s ethically sourced materials , aesthetic and comfort are well known. What else was important to you when you designed it?

- Simple to Use

When designing the carrierI needed to ensure I could fasten the straps quickly and easily on my own and without awkwardly reaching behind my back to fasten fiddly clips. Our buckles fasten at the front to make it as simple as possible.We purposely left off the extra gadgets to ensure there is no guesswork when using your baby carrier.

- Comfortable

So many carriers I used were incredibly uncomfortable and lacked fundamental support for my back. I created the Zarpar carrier to have the straps cross over in an X across your back helping to evenly distribute the weight of your baby which promotes a better posture for the wearer, meaning you can enjoy carrying your baby for much longer.

- Breathable

Summer in Australia gets hot and a breathable baby carrier is essential. Our carriers are made using soft and breathable 100% Linen, ensuring total durability and you and bub stay cool. Our front panel is made from handwoven Allo & Cotton sourced from the rural regions of Nepal, making our carriers as close to nature as possible.

- Ethical & Sustainable

Women are at the heart of our business. We want to continually progress and re-evaluate our processes, to simply do better, for our environment, for you and especially for our babies and their future.

Through thoughtful sourcing we ensure fair wages and clean and safe working conditions. We are committed to using pure and simple fabrics, which have been sustainably sourced respecting animals and the environment.

We believe the traditional art of handmade design has the power to enrich the lives of others. By working with rural communities, we help to strengthen the livelihoods of marginalised families.

Can you explain your ‘natural parenting’ approach , and how Zarpar Bebê’s carriers support this

My parenting, almost from the start, has been instinctual. I say almost, as it took me a few months to realise that I knew instinctively what worked best for our family. As new parents, we have advice coming from family, friends, midwives, medical professionals and of course Dr Google. It simply forces us to doubt our better judgement and to turn off our innate ability to listen to our own instincts.Once I finally made the shift to listen to my inner voice, I felt my whole world become clearer, my son became calmer and I finally could whole heartedly embrace and enjoy my motherhood journey.

By following my own mother instincts it allowed me to simply parent my son in a way that worked for my family and that felt natural to me. Natural Parenting practices are at the core of being an instinctive parent, it is centred around meeting your babies needs and following your maternal instincts.How you implement these practices is like creating a piece of art, it is unique to your family. Baby wearing was a core part of my parenting shift, it truly changed the way I parented.It gave me back my identity and the freedom I thought I had lost.I could connect once again in nature to enjoy bush hikes or beach walks. Being outdoors was a place where I go to reset any conflicting energy. A place where I can disconnect from responsibility and be totally present.Wearing my son in the baby carrier allowed me to take control over the things in my life and my home which were causing me anxiety, the everyday things like washing, cooking and cleaning which I could now do with my son sleeping soundly with my hands free.We no longer felt trapped in the prescribed sleep/eat/repeat routine, we had the freedom to enjoy and embrace our life as we pleased. The list of “baby essentials” became much less, which meant getting out and about was hassle free.

What do other mums say about your Zarpar Bebê’s carriers?

These are afew beautiful love notes we have received from mums:

“I’d been looking for a more structured carrier after my baby grew out of his stretchy wrap carrier, and I’m so glad I came across this one. It’s so easy to use, and comfortable. I love that you can wear it front, back and side. And of course, it’s super beautiful, ethically made, and not all bulky like most other structured carriers. To top it off, the customer service was great, and it always feels good to support a small Australian business"

"I absolutely love my snap carrier and would recommend it to everyone! I gave myself a nerve injury in my shoulder from carrying my daughter most of the day in other soft structures carriers (I tried many)and was having to wear a posture brace to correct it until I received my snap carrier and now the pain is totally gone and I can carry without wearing the brace. It is super comfortable and beautiful and I think the linen will be lovely and cool in summer. Good hood with great coverage too!"

What was it like having two young children and launching a business?

It was definitely very challenging, but at the same time my kids were still very young so I was able to get a lot done during their sleeps (day sleeps are a thing of the past in our house!)-it’s incredible how much you can power through when you have limited time!

It was just me and my loaned sewing machine creating the Zarpar Bebê carriers in the first 12months, late nights at the sewing machine with a baby on my back was the norm. My daughter lived in her baby carrier and she was more than happy to spend all day and night there!

Working with young children is all kinds of chaos, but I would not have this business had it not been for my children. The organic growth has allowed me to be present with my kids in their young years which I will be forever grateful for

What does a typical day look like with a business and three little children?

Every day is completely different–but most days are a total juggle. My day usually starts with feeding the troops and then me disappearing into the workroom to get all our orders sent out. I then get an hour of me time at aerial yoga before we begin our day!

If it’s not a kindy day for my big babes, we’ll likely go on an adventure together for the morning. After lunch is my time to power through my work that needs doing. Kindy days are not much different, except I get a couple of extra hours in the morning to get things done.

I am lucky to have my husband around a fair bit–however he too runs his own business, so we try to work together as best we can.

Making sure I have small moments of connection with each babe throughout the day helps to keep everyone balanced and allows me a little more time without distraction.

I have learnt to take the pressure off myself, I try not to be busy for busy sake. Each Monday I write out my weeks tasks and try to allocate time to do each. Not every week goes to plan, but we make it work.

What is the basic philosophy behind Zarpar Bebê?

Zarpar Bebê was created to provide a beautiful, simple and ethical solution for those mindful parents on a journey through natural parenting practices. We want to allow parents the freedom to explore and connect to the world by simply experiencing life together.

We work closely with the beautiful women of a remote community in rural Nepal where our fabrics are all hand spun and hand woven on traditional looms. We are working towards strengthening the livelihoods of financially deprived and marginalised home-based women workers by creating a means of income for these otherwise marginalised communities.

These fabrics are then sent to our small team in Bali Indonesia where our carriers are carefully pieced together at the hands of a team of talented women sewers.

Who wears Zarpar Bebê?

We are founded on a beautiful community of likeminded families. All of our customers feel this connection when wearing their Zarpar Bebê baby carrier and I know of many friendships that have blossomed simply through chance meetings while wearing our carriers.The earthy tones and textures of our fabrics and the way they have been produced are unique and help our community know they are doing the right thing for our makers and our earth.

Shop the Zarpar Bebê collection at One Fine Baby here.

Want to see the products up close? Come to our next Sydney baby expo or Melbourne baby expo by visiting our Sydney baby expo page here or our Melbourne baby expo page here.