Lisa from Cheeky Little Soles

Welcome to the start of our series of interviews with members of the children's fashion industry. Enjoy!

Name and Location: Lisa Koba, Melbourne Victoria

Your business? Cheeky Little Soles Blog - http://cheekylittlesoles.blogspot.com/

How long have you been in the kids fashion industry?
I started Cheeky Little Soles in 2005 and haven’t looked back its full steam ahead!

What inspired you to start your business?
My daughter Lily inspired Cheeky Little Soles. Lily did everything early and at 6 month of age she started to stand. Socks and floorboards were not a good combination, so I looked for solutions and options on the market. I found a gap in the market for top quality, stylish and reasonably priced soft soled leather baby shoes, so I set about designing my own range and the rest is history.
What are your top 3 best selling items?
At the moment with this cold weather we are having our Polar Boots are just walking out the door. Our top selling baby shoes at the moment are Hey Stretch, Scooter, Firefly and Flower Patch. Our baby ballet shoes are always a top selling product.

What is a “typical” work day for you?
My day is normally set to working through a task list which I normally prepare the night before (this list really helps me focus on what is important and what needs to be done to meet deadlines). The schedule of each day is different so I may have a Kinder drop off, swimming or child care. During this time I access my emails on my blackberry to see if anything urgent has come in overnight that needs to be actioned immediately. Then I return the office give the kids a snack and do the first 2-3 jobs on the task list and make and return calls. We then have lunch and a sleep for my son (he is an incredible sleeper, I have been blessed!!). If my daughter is home this is her independent play time she gets to play music, do craft, dress ups and loads more. If I am working in the warehouse there is a huge amount of toys including a pretend kitchen, work bench, cubby house, dress ups and remote controlled Wiggles Big Red car they can amuse themselves with and they love it. They also love to help so I have stamps, texters, butcher paper they draw on etc. The late afternoon really depends on the kids moods and the weather. The chunk of my work day starts after dinner when the kids are in bed at about 7.30/8.00 this is where I plow through and work uninterrupted. I normally fall into bed and have a ‘brainstorm time’ with my husband, as he has a fantastic business brain and we really compliment each others skills. But as I said each day is different, especially if the kids are sick or it is school holidays which is when the task list just gets longer and longer!!

Describe your perfect weekend:
The perfect weekend for me would be a little sleep in where the kids don’t wake until 8.00, then when they do they come and jump in our bed for a big family cuddle. Then going to our local for a yummy cooked breakfast, my son has allergies (gluten, dairy and egg) so we are a bit limited in where we can go, so our local is our favourite! Then for a visit to the playground to listen to the kids laugh. It just doesn’t get better than that!


Thank you Lisa! Like I've said a million times, I wish they came in my size!

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