We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Lauren McElroy a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Lauren, appreciate you joining us today. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?
Years ago, in my South LA community, I couldn’t help but notice a significant lack of products and services promoting health and wellness for children. Being a User Experience Designer, I couldn’t ignore this void, and I knew I had to make a difference. Thus, the idea of an educational entertainment company began to take shape in my mind, with the goal of filling this much-needed gap.
I envisioned creating an indoor play and learning space that would bring joy and wellness to kids in the community. The first step was to come up with a name and brand that perfectly captured the essence of health and happiness. After some delightful brainstorming, I merged the names of two plants – Juneberry and Tickleweed – to create the whimsical and evocative name “Tickleberry Place.”
With a name and vision in hand, I delved into crafting the identity of Tickleberry Place. As a designer, I knew the importance of a strong brand, so I hired a talented designer friend to create a captivating logo, and a color scheme that exuded positivity and warmth.
From there, I spent days and weeks in between working full time, defining the business plan model, connecting with people to help execute my plan, and finding resources to help fund my vision.
However, turning my dream into reality was not without its challenges. There were permits to obtain, licenses to secure, and raising capital. I quickly learned that investors are very challenging to obtain when your company isn’t tech enabled. People often loved the vision and brand, but remained conservative about investing early.
In between the business work, I continued to build the brand and customer following, by participating at events and doing monthly play and art at local farmers markets. It was a lot of work! But my passion and the excitement from our followers kept me going, and I tackled each hurdle with determination. My sister even came onboard as a partner to help push the mission forward.
Finding the perfect location for Tickleberry Place was another adventure altogether. I scoured the area, looking for a spot that would be accessible and inviting to the community. And finally, like a magical discovery, I stumbled upon a charming location that felt destined to be the home of Tickleberry Place.
With the location secured and the brand defined, it was time to bring my vision to life. Excitement filled the air as we signed the lease and took the first steps towards making Tickleberry Place a reality. I hired a talented architect and designer, ensuring that every aspect of the space was carefully crafted to ensure quality and safety.
Designing the space was a puzzle I gladly embraced, but little did I know that we would face a major obstacle. As we delved into the process, we discovered unpermitted construction plumbing work in the unit, and this presented a complicated situation with the landlord. Reluctantly, we had to make the tough decision to walk away from the location, resulting in wasted time and money. It was a hard lesson learned about the importance of thoroughly vetting people and trusting our instincts.
Undeterred, I paused to regroup and rethink our approach. As we looked at the lovable character in our logo, I had a revelation. There was a beautiful story waiting to be told with that Tickleberry character. So, at the start of 2020, I pivoted and embarked on a new adventure – creating a Children’s Animation series!
Gathering a dedicated team, we poured our hearts and souls into developing the series and producing a pilot episode to test the market. It was a joy to collaborate with others, and things seemed to fall together quickly and magically. Despite having no prior experience in entertainment or animation, we were amazed at how smoothly it all came together.
The Tickleberry Place animation series was born, using stories and music to teach emotional intelligence and mindfulness to preschool-aged children. We even incorporated crystal sound bowls into the music to provide healing and soothing vibes to the young viewers.
The pilot episode was a hit, selected at a couple of film festivals, and we even won a competition that earned us a short contract with a production company to further develop the series for TV or streaming platforms. Although the entertainment industry faced challenges due to a strike, the positive feedback we received from various animation professionals assured us that our series would be picked up and shared with the world.
While we wait for that magical moment, we decided to host our first Family Wellness event. This event is a celebration of well-being, featuring yoga, a soul-soothing sound bath, and a special screening of our animated pilot on the lesson of patience.
The journey from the initial idea of an indoor play and learning space to becoming a children’s animation creator has been filled with twists, turns, and unexpected joys. I’ve learned valuable lessons about trusting my instincts, taking bold leaps, and finding new paths when faced with challenges. As we continue to grow and inspire children through our animation series, I can’t wait to see what other adventures await us in the marvelous world of Tickleberry Place!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m Lauren, the Founder & CEO of Tickleberry Place. With more than a decade of experience in User Experience Design, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a diverse range of businesses, spanning healthcare, education, entertainment, and e-commerce industries. My focus has always been on crafting digital experiences that genuinely delight customers and make their lives better.
What truly sets my soul on fire is creating happiness and wonder for people. That’s why I decided to embark on this incredible journey and bring Tickleberry Place to life. It’s more than just a project; it’s my passion and purpose to spread joy and enrich the lives of children and families.
Tickleberry Place provides an omni-channel experience that educates families on emotional intelligence and mindfulness through animation content, events, and products. (Currently developing a children book and plush toys)
The Tickleberry Place animation lessons are a key part of the business to build brand awareness. This preschool-aged animation content focuses on storytelling and music, to teach mindfulness, emotional health, self-awareness and social skills, these skills enrich mental health and emotional intelligence for children at an early stage. We are also providing a solution where children also see themselves represented in our media content. Our animation characters reflect diversity and cohesive community.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
Funding Tickleberry Place was a labor of love and resourcefulness. To kickstart the dream, I used my hard-earned income from my full-time job as a UX designer to make the initial investment. In addition to a small crowdfunding campaign raise. But that wasn’t all; I also made a bold decision to sell a duplex investment property, using the funds to bring the animated pilot to life. While I received some interest-free business loans, they weren’t enough to make a significant impact in getting the business off the ground. Undeterred, I continue to seek additional support for funding, knowing that with perseverance and determination, we will secure the resources needed to keep the magic of Tickleberry Place alive and thriving.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
After finishing the pilot episode, we were over the moon with excitement and eager to take the next big step – getting our beloved Tickleberry Place animation series distributed to the world. Little did we know that this part of the journey would prove to be an uphill battle.
Pitching the show to studios and streaming platforms was a difficult process. Despite the accolades and positive feedback from film festivals and industry professionals, breaking into the competitive entertainment industry was proving to be a bigger challenge.
To make matters more complicated, the contract partnership with the production studio we had won through the competition didn’t work out as expected. It was a setback that left us feeling disappointed and uncertain about our next steps. I refused to be deterred. With unwavering determination, I rolled up my sleeves and set out to build my own connections within the industry. I reached out to industry veterans, animation enthusiasts, and anyone who could potentially open doors for us.
However, the timing couldn’t have been more difficult. The entertainment industry was facing its own challenges, and the writers’ strike put many projects on hold. It feels like we are navigating a storm of obstacles that made progress slower than I had hoped for.
But I firmly believed in the magic of Tickleberry Place and the invaluable life skills it could impart to children. I knew I couldn’t simply wait for things to fall into place; I had to take proactive steps to generate revenue and keep our dream alive.
So, we decided to get creative and explore alternative avenues. In the face of the distribution challenges, I turned the focus to finding other ways to share the animation and bring mindfulness and emotional intelligence to kids. And that’s when the idea of hosting our first Family Wellness event was born.
With excitement and determination once again fueling us, we set about organizing an event that would showcase the pilot episode and teach kids about mindfulness and well-being. This event was not only a celebration of Tickleberry Place but also a beautiful way to connect with our audience directly and share the magic of our animation. I’m going to keep pushing forward until we reach the goal.
Contact Info:
- Website: tickleberryplace.com
- Instagram: @tickleberryplace
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tickleberryplace
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tickleberry-place/
- Twitter: @tickleberrypl
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRFuHDKh7YeKN5Loo1gLL6A
Image Credits
Artist & Illustrator: Alexa Carter Animation: Essence Cartoons