SBDC Client Story – Felt the Food
Client Name: Phebe Higgins
Business Name: Felt the Food
Business Website: https://www.feltthefood.com/
Industry: Crafts
Location: Salem, NH
SBDC Advisor's Name: Andrea O'Brien
It’s ingrained in her memory; that Christmas morning when Phebe Higgins, then just a child, came down the stairs to discover the greatest Christmas present she’d ever received…a play kitchen. It was the kitchen play set of the 80’s in all its cream-colored, plastic glory just waiting for little Phebe to jump into fun-filled imaginative play. She loved it! She recalls making up games and putting on pretend cooking shows with her sister. It’s her fondest memory from childhood and as it turns out, became the foundation for Felt the Food, the beautiful business she created in 2023.
Crafting, creativity, and learning through play has long been a passion of hers and when she became a stay-at-home mom, that passion only grew. Driven to help her son learn through imaginative play, Phebe decided she wanted to make play plate food out of felt material. Trouble was, she didn’t know how to sew. But the desire to help her son was more motivating than her lack of ability. So, she learned everything she could, and 14 days into her quest, she was making a full felt apple pie complete with an apple segment, pie crust and lattice crust.
But it took a lot of time to learn the pattern, make the pattern, figure out the cuts, and teach herself how to sew it. She recalls the day she looked at her husband and said, “I wish there was something where I could just jump into this.” He turned to her and simply said, “build it.” That’s when Felt the Food was born.
Felt the Food is a line of DIY felt food kits that are handmade by you to spark learning and play. Inspired by her love for handmade creations and her little one’s curiosity, Phebe designed Felt the Food kits to be fun and functional for children to play with. “There’s something special about making handmade toys for your little one,” says Phebe. In every kit, users will find cut pattern pieces, crafting essentials, and polyester fiber fill. They are perfect for parents of toddlers, pre-teens and beginner crafters, teachers and caregivers, gift givers, and crafting enthusiasts.
To Phebe’s surprise, Felt the Food, Salem, NH, grew quickly. Unsure whether it was even something anyone would be interested in, she took to Tik Tok and posted one short video. She was shocked to find she had reached hundreds of thousands of people. “I can’t believe I’ve inspired 40,000 people as adults to start learning how to sew and playing with play food,” says Phebe.
It was that quick growth that prompted Phebe to connect with SBDC for help in early 2024. She was seeking expert advice and an outside perspective on how she could grow and scale her business at a pace she felt comfortable with. Phebe explains, “It's like being in a car going 60 miles an hour and saying, ‘wait, there's traffic ahead. I have to slow down’ and not knowing how I am going to slow down even a little bit to get to the things that I need to get done.” Luckily, her SBDC Business Advisor, Andrea O’Brien was there to help.
Andrea helped Phebe create a marketing plan and look at the numbers strategically and more closely quarter by quarter. “My advisor helped me truly realize that I had something special to work with,” says Phebe. “Through her encouragement, I've been able to apply for specialized funding that I never would have before.”
Phebe says Andrea has been amazing to work with and appreciates how excited Andrea genuinely is about her business.
I think the biggest thing that we've been working on is moving me from a place of not just working in my business, but working on my business.
Andrea is always first to ask, “what does your business need?”
With demand for kits going up and an upcoming move into retail space, Andrea has provided valuable guidance on manufacturing options and sources for funding. According to Phebe, Andrea’s support has meant “everything,” often providing Phebe with SBDC programs and/or connections that will help her face any business challenge. One example was to recommend Phebe apply for a competitive MBA Capstone Program where MBA students review her business issues and provide solution-based ideas. Phebe applied and was thrilled to be accepted into the program. She hopes that through the program, she will walk away with a clear path forward for solving some challenges in her business.
“Having a small business often feels like you are piloting the ship alone,” says Phebe. “Andrea gave me a copilot. “I do truly feel like she's sitting next to me, guiding me, helping me. She wants me to win. She wants me to be a success story.”