In India’s rapidly evolving parenting and baby care market, modern parents are becoming increasingly conscious of the products they choose for their children. While factors such as comfort and affordability continue to matter, awareness around product safety, skin-friendly materials, and global quality standards is reshaping purchasing decisions. Recognizing this shift early, Ashwanth Sureshbabu & Swathi, Founders of A Toddler Thing, set out to build a brand that prioritizes babies’ health without compromising on accessibility or affordability.

Speaking with Indian Startup Times, Ashwanth shared his entrepreneurial journey, the inspiration behind Toddler Thing, the challenges of educating Indian consumers about certified baby products, and his vision of building a globally trusted Indian parenting brand.

From Engineering and Marketing to Entrepreneurship

Ashwanth’s entrepreneurial journey began long before Toddler Thing. A mechanical engineering graduate, he actively participated in his college entrepreneurship club, where he developed an early interest in solving real-world problems through business.

To strengthen his understanding of business and consumer behavior, he later pursued an MBA in Marketing and Data Science in the United States. After returning to India in 2017 for personal reasons, he began exploring opportunities where innovation could create meaningful impact.

That opportunity emerged through an unexpected observation.

Identifying an Overlooked Problem in Baby Care

The idea for Toddler Thing originated when Ashwanth noticed a close friend struggling with her baby’s highly sensitive skin. Despite purchasing products from reputed brands, the child continued to experience rashes and irritation.

As he researched further, he discovered that many baby garments available in the Indian market used conventional dyes and chemicals that were not necessarily designed with infant skin safety in mind. Unlike several Western markets where globally recognized safety certifications are common, India had very limited awareness around certified skin-safe clothing.

This gap convinced Ashwanth that parents deserved better choices.

Toddler Thing was established with a simple but powerful mission—to offer baby essentials made from safe, certified, skin-friendly materials that parents could trust from day one.

The Biggest Challenge Was Not Manufacturing—It Was Awareness

Launching the brand, however, brought an unexpected challenge.

According to Ashwanth, creating safe products was easier than convincing parents why those products actually mattered.

When Toddler Thing entered the market, conversations around certifications, skin-safe fabrics, and chemical-free baby clothing were still relatively uncommon. Most parents purchased baby apparel based on appearance, price, or brand familiarity, without realizing how material quality could affect an infant’s sensitive skin.

In the early years, the company organized offline parenting meetups and educational sessions to explain the importance of certified products. These grassroots efforts helped build initial trust, although scaling awareness remained difficult.

Following the pandemic, Toddler Thing shifted its education-first approach online by collaborating with parenting communities, babymoon programs, and postpartum specialists. These partnerships enabled the brand to reach thousands of new parents while positioning itself as a trusted knowledge partner rather than just another baby clothing company.

Building Trust Through Experience

Winning customer trust became central to Toddler Thing’s growth strategy.

One of the company’s flagship products—its reusable, machine-washable cloth diapers—required parents to move away from the convenience of disposable diapers, making adoption a significant challenge.

Rather than relying solely on marketing claims, Toddler Thing introduced an innovative trial pack model.

Parents could purchase the product, use it, and return it within 14 days if they were not satisfied.

The approach significantly reduced hesitation among first-time buyers while demonstrating the company’s confidence in its products. Once parents experienced the quality firsthand, return rates remained low and customer confidence increased substantially.

Ashwanth believes that allowing customers to experience the product often builds stronger trust than traditional advertising.

Making Safe Products Affordable

A common misconception in the baby care industry is that premium-quality products must always come with premium pricing.

Toddler Thing has consciously worked to challenge that perception.

Ashwanth explained that since babies outgrow clothing quickly, parents naturally hesitate to invest heavily in products with a short usage cycle. The brand therefore focuses on maintaining an optimal balance between safety, quality, durability, and affordability.

Instead of selecting the most expensive materials available, Toddler Thing carefully chooses high-quality organic cotton grades that deliver skin safety while keeping products reasonably priced for Indian families.

This approach allows the company to make certified baby products accessible to a much wider audience.

A Market That Is Becoming More Aware

Reflecting on industry evolution, Ashwanth noted that awareness around baby safety has improved significantly over the last few years.

Today’s parents are increasingly asking questions about fabric quality, certifications, sustainability, and chemical safety before making purchasing decisions.

He believes this growing awareness is encouraging more brands to improve manufacturing standards, ultimately benefiting both consumers and the broader baby care ecosystem.

As consumer education continues to improve, Ashwanth expects India’s premium baby essentials segment to witness substantial growth over the coming years.

Building Sustainably Rather Than Growing at Any Cost

Like many founders, Ashwanth has also navigated the fundraising journey.

He believes investors primarily evaluate two factors before backing an early-stage company—strong product-market fit and founder-market fit.

Toddler Thing has intentionally focused on sustainable growth rather than chasing rapid expansion. Instead of prioritizing aggressive scaling, the company has concentrated on strengthening customer retention, refining products, and identifying strategic partners capable of expanding distribution effectively.

This disciplined approach has helped the company establish stronger long-term foundations.

Looking Beyond India

Ashwanth’s ambitions extend well beyond the domestic market.

Over the next five years, Toddler Thing aims to serve more than 2 crore customers while expanding into international markets across Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

With increasing global demand for safe, sustainable baby products, he believes Indian brands have a significant opportunity to compete internationally by combining quality manufacturing with affordability.

Building Trust One Parent at a Time

Toddler Thing’s journey demonstrates that meaningful businesses often emerge from solving everyday problems that others overlook.

By focusing on education, transparency, certified safety, and customer trust instead of short-term growth, Ashwanth Sureshbabu has positioned Toddler Thing as more than an e-commerce baby brand—it is building confidence among parents during one of the most important phases of their lives.

As awareness around child health, sustainable parenting, and product safety continues to rise, Toddler Thing is well positioned to become one of India’s leading names in trusted baby essentials while carrying its mission to families across global markets.

Interview By: Arushi Agarwal