Winner
Emerging
When Jennifer Fallon was searching online for beautiful, yet affordable, wedding favors leading up to her 2003 wedding, she came up disappointed. But with that disappointment, she saw a market for potential business. With a marketing background, growing Internet expertise and $2,000, she set up an office in her basement and began MyWeddingFavors.com, selling existing wedding favors.
She quickly saw a lack of creativity in the market and decided to take her business to the next level by designing and manufacturing fashionable and affordable wedding favors, which resulted in the creation of Kate Aspen. She risked her own money on the venture, and her initial challenges included sourcing and balancing quality with cost. She researched and found that China may be the answer, so with the help of some Chinese friends, who are now partners in the company, her company grew into The Aspen Brands Co., a multimillion-dollar entity that now designs, manufactures and sells quality wedding favors to both online and traditional retail outlets.
In 2006, when Fallon, the company’s CEO, became pregnant with twins, she expanded her business to manufacturing baby shower favors. Then, in 2007, she launched a line of high-quality baby gifts under the Baby Aspen brand as well as favors for all life events.
As with any industry, her competition is fierce, but she overcomes this by surrounding herself with the most talented and imaginative designers, Internet-marketing specialists, managers, logistics specialists and writers.
Today, Fallon is committed to growing the business by establishing relationships with large retailers, including Bed Bath & Beyond, Michael’s, Babies “R” Us, David’s Bridal, Hobby Lobby and The Knot. As she looks ahead, she sees more great opportunities for The Aspen Brands Co. and hopes to capitalize on each one she encounters.
How to reach: The Aspen Brands Co., (678) 282-0053 or www.theaspenbrands.com
