×
×
homepage logo

An infant business in Blue Earth

By Staff | Sep 6, 2015

Heidi Nielsen (above) is the owner of Belly, Baby & Beyond Boutique. Her store just recently opened in July.

Mother always knows best, and this mother is bringing her best for mothers and children in Blue Earth with her new business called Belly,?Baby & Beyond Boutique located at 105 N. Grove Street.

Heidi Nielsen has been a life-long resident of Blue Earth and is raising her own family of three children in Blue Earth. Her oldest son Caleb is 25, Noah is 8, and little Castan is 20 months old. She has her experience as a mother and wants to share what she knows about mommyhood with the families around Faribault County.

“It is ridiculous how far I would have to travel for good quality baby products in Southern Minnesota,” says Nielsen. “When Noah was little, I would have to travel all the way to Mankato to a store called Sweet Peas, and once they were out of business, my only option was to either order things online or go all the way to the Twin Cities. I don’t want other mothers to have to travel that far or pay way too much like some stores near by.”

So Nielsen created her own boutique in Blue Earth which meets both the distance concerns and cost concerns Nielsen has had in the past. What sets Belly, Baby & Beyond apart from other baby stores in the area is the amount of well-known baby products for mommies and children up to age eight at affordable prices.

“There are stores in the area that cost $5-$10 more than what is here,” says Nielsen. “We do have a Walmart in town that sells some baby products, but here there is a wider variety of better-known, name brand products.”

You can see a layout of all of the fun items Nielsen has to offer for mommies and children up to age 8.

Some of the well-known products Nielsen mentioned were Itzy Ritzy, Monkey Mat (which was highlighted on the television show “Shark Tank”), Melissa and Doug, and many others.

To most, those names may sound like complete nonsense, but moms know exactly what is behind the unique names, and that is high-quality baby care items, educational toys, and safe-to-use products.

Nielsen says some of the fastest selling products are her Babiators, aviator sunglasses for young children, and her amber stone necklaces and bracelets.

“They are not just for babies,” says Nielsen. “They’re for adults too. They help with pain and inflammation in the body from teething in a small child to arthritis in an adult.” Nielsen says amber jewelry is one of the fastest selling items and takes years to make.

“We are lucky enough to keep them in stock,” she adds.

Sophie the Giraffe who is part of a Belly, Baby & Beyond Boutique drawing. A winner will be announced Sept. 14 and will be able to take Sophie home with them.

Nielsen’s boutique has not been in Blue Earth very long, opening just two months ago on July 14 and has a grand opening in the works with Blue Earth’s Chamber of Commerce.

“It has always been a dream of mine to own my own store,” says Nielsen. “And, I’ve played around with the idea for many years, but this past year, I bit the bullet and now we have our boutique.”

Many have already noticed a very familiar face at the boutique on multiple occasions, if they have driven by the North Grove Street location.

“Big Bird has been helping us welcome customers, and he gets a lot of compliments,” says Nielsen.

However, due to recent inclement weather, Big Bird has had to go to the friendly neighborhood doctor to get taken care of after his big birdy beak had an encounter with the wind and fell over.

“He will be back, though,” promises Nielsen.

Another familiar face at the Belly, Baby & Beyond Boutique has been Sophie the stuffed giraffe, who is now a part of a special adoption drawing.

“With every purchase made,” informs Nielsen, “you get to put your name in a drawing to win Sophie to take home.”

The winner will be chosen on Sept. 14.

Nielsen also says that if there is a specific item mommies are looking for, she will be more than happy to special order items.

As summer comes to a close, Nielsen is packing her store full of goodies for the fall and winter months and will have even more new items in the store soon.

“I’ve already had great responses from customers who have come into the store or special ordered things from us,” says Nielsen. She also has many young fans of the store as well, with pictures that adorn her front wall.

“Family is very important to us, so we want to make sure that everyone’s family has quality products at affordable prices,” shares Nielsen.

Belly, Baby &?Beyond Boutique is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday and is open late until 8 p.m. on Thursdays.

And no, a belly or a baby is not required to enjoy the many gifts and fun items Nielsen has to offer at her boutique.