Cassidy Crowley was only 7 years old when she identified a problem that sparked the beginnings of her company, “The Baby Toon.” She had entered a Science and Engineering Fair at her school and needed to find a problem in order to enter the fair. At home, she noticed that her baby sister had a tendency of chewing on the hard back end of her spoon. This would always concern her mother; she didn’t want the baby to choke or hurt herself.
To solve this problem, Cassidy came up with “The Baby Toon,” a 2-in-1 baby spoon and teething toy made of soft FDA silicone and designed to eliminate the long, hard spoon back. Instead, The Baby Toon comes in a variety of animal shapes with rounded corners and edges, making it safe for babies to chew on as well as a helpful teething device. This newly-patented shape also allows parents and/or younger siblings to easily hold the spoon and feed the baby without the spoon accidentally going too far into the baby’s mouth.
Cassidy notes that The Baby Toon is also educational for babies, as it comes in a variety of colors (blue, pink, and green), shapes (rectangle, square, and circle), and animals (elephant, alligator, and koala). The Baby Toon is a new, fun, safe baby spoon and teething toy with various benefits.
At age 10, Cassidy appeared on season 11 of Shark Tank (2019) to pitch her business idea. She received a deal with Lori Greiner for $50,000 and 50% equity. Today, “The Baby Toon” has grown into a successful company with around $1 million in revenue each year. The Baby Toon is now sold through several major retailers, including Munchkin, Target, Walmart, and Amazon.
Cassidy Crowley’s entrepreneurship story is truly astounding, especially given that she started her business and appeared on Shark Tank at such a young age. Cassidy should be a reminder to all young entrepreneurs that the key to a successful business is finding a problem or need in an extremely niche area, and then solving the problem in a way no one else has before while providing several benefits.
The Baby Toon is a great idea! When my brother was younger, he chewed on his silver ware too, eventually destroying the ends of them. I think Baby Toon is a great innovation that allows babies to keep their mouth and teeth safe, while also teaching them about colors, shapes, and animals in a fun way. Being on Shark Tank at age 10 I’m sure was intimidating, but her and her business benefitted from it. If my brother was still little, I would’ve definitely bought one.