Q&A
BEYOND EXPECTATIONS How teething accessory company Three Hearts evolved from being sold on Etsy to becoming a specialty store must-have.
INDA TRIEU NEVER intended for her handmade teethers that she first sold on Etsy to become a sought-after brand now sold in approximately 1,500 stores nationwide. But after five years, three kids and one pandemic, the Three Hearts of Houston founder has achieved tremendous success through innovation, determination and passion. Three Hearts is truly a labor of love story, as Trieu continues to add chapters one market, one retailer and one order at a time. Here, Trieu reveals the key ingredients to the Three Hearts recipe. It’s a blend of product, people and planning. And while that may seem pretty basic, it’s all about how this Mompreneur mixes those ingredients. Dig in. —Michele Silver You must get asked this all the time, but who are the three “hearts”? When I began the business in February 2017, my son Eden was an only child. He was my inspiration for my children’s products, and so the company represented the union of him, my husband and myself. By 2019, I had two more children and I felt it was my destiny to be a mom of three so now, my three hearts are Eden, Maya and Ori. How did Three Hearts evolve from an Etsy operation to selling in 1,500 stores all over the country? I began making pacifier clips, bibs and teethers and selling at arts & craft shows and farmers’ markets all over Houston. I was a mom during the week, and on the weekends, I would sell what I could. In
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September 2017, post Hurricane Harvey, we planned to open a small baby boutique in the Houston Heights area focused on our products and children’s apparel. That October, I went to shop the Dallas Market Center and happened to meet a rep, Annette Cardona-Stein, who had heard about our Texas teething rattlers via social media. She asked if I would consider selling to retailers. While I had never looked at my business as a manufacturer, she was so convincing, so I had to give it a try. We’ve grown naturally one store at a time, one order at a time, one market at a time.
Linda Trieu
